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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: field · season · race · kid · wave · press

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. field — for sport
  3. press — to push
  4. field — a subject
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. press — a publisher
  7. season — in sport
  8. race — the arms race
  9. race — humankind
  10. kid — child
  11. field — farmland
  12. season — of the year
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. wave — a sudden rise
  16. race — a contest
  17. kid — to tease
  18. press — newspapers

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com