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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: ruler · face · track · hide · press · pitcher · field · wound

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. track — to keep track
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. press — newspapers
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. field — farmland
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. track — a song
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. press — a publisher
  13. face — to confront
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. face — to point toward
  18. face — part of the head
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. track — a path
  21. field — a subject
  22. press — to push
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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