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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 120 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: pass · fall · saw · field · press · mug · scale · bat

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. pass — a permit
  3. field — farmland
  4. mug — to rob
  5. pass — to succeed
  6. field — for sport
  7. press — to push
  8. fall — the season
  9. press — newspapers
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. saw — the tool
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. mug — a face
  14. fall — to drop
  15. saw — the tool
  16. press — a publisher
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. bat — the animal
  19. scale — in music
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. scale — size or range
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. mug — a cup
  24. field — a subject

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