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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 124 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: wave · field · fall · fork · press · march

  1. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. field — for sport
  3. field — a subject
  4. press — a publisher
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. fall — to drop
  7. march — music
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. field — farmland
  10. press — to push
  11. fall — to drop
  12. march — the month
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. march — the month
  15. press — newspapers
  16. wave — of the sea
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. fall — the season

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