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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: march · mate · scale · firm · face · press · track · bat

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. march — the month
  3. track — a path
  4. press — to push
  5. firm — steady
  6. mate — to breed
  7. press — newspapers
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. press — a publisher
  10. march — music
  11. march — the month
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. mate — a partner
  14. track — a song
  15. face — to point toward
  16. scale — size or range
  17. firm — a company
  18. face — to confront
  19. bat — the animal
  20. face — part of the head
  21. track — to keep track
  22. scale — in music
  23. firm — decided
  24. scale — for weighing

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