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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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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: fork · cell · press · swing · field · rest · lean · race

  1. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. field — for sport
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. swing — in golf
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. press — newspapers
  7. field — farmland
  8. swing — to play on
  9. swing — music
  10. cell — in biology
  11. race — humankind
  12. field — a subject
  13. race — a contest
  14. rest — a break
  15. rest — what's left
  16. press — to push
  17. rest — what's left
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. race — the arms race
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. lean — to bend
  22. fork — in a road
  23. press — a publisher
  24. cell — a phone

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