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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: fan · craft · wake · season · file · bowl · press · field

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. press — to push
  3. file — a tool
  4. season — in sport
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. craft — a handicraft
  9. field — a subject
  10. craft — a skill
  11. press — a publisher
  12. press — newspapers
  13. file — a line of people
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. field — farmland
  19. file — a document
  20. wake — a trail
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. season — of the year
  23. craft — boats
  24. bowl — to roll

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