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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: wake · field · rock · face · vault · press · cap · game

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. rock — a stone
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. cap — a lid
  5. face — to point toward
  6. cap — of ice
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. rock — music
  9. face — to confront
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. face — part of the head
  14. press — to push
  15. field — for sport
  16. cap — a hat
  17. wake — a trail
  18. field — a subject
  19. press — newspapers
  20. game — wild animals
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. vault — a safe
  23. press — a publisher
  24. game — a match

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