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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: bat · press · track · saw · pass · roll · field · mate

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. track — a path
  4. saw — the tool
  5. track — to keep track
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. press — newspapers
  9. roll — a list
  10. press — to push
  11. mate — to breed
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. field — farmland
  14. field — for sport
  15. mate — a friend
  16. press — a publisher
  17. pass — a permit
  18. roll — a cake
  19. bat — the animal
  20. field — a subject
  21. saw — the tool
  22. mate — a partner
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bat — for baseball

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