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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: face · track · plane · season · field · press

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. press — to push
  3. season — in sport
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. track — a path
  6. face — part of the head
  7. press — newspapers
  8. season — of the year
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. track — a song
  11. press — a publisher
  12. face — to point toward
  13. plane — in geometry
  14. plane — a tool
  15. field — a subject
  16. track — to keep track
  17. face — to confront
  18. field — for sport

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