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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: trunk · field · swing · pass · press · nail · chest · rash

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. press — a publisher
  3. rash — hasty
  4. pass — a permit
  5. press — to push
  6. swing — music
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. swing — to play on
  9. rash — a series
  10. swing — in golf
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. chest — of your body
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. field — for sport
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. field — farmland
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. field — a subject
  23. press — newspapers
  24. chest — a box

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