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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: snap · wave · press · root · saw · game · wound · field

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. saw — the tool
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. root — of a word
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. field — farmland
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. wound — an injury
  11. press — a publisher
  12. root — of a plant
  13. press — newspapers
  14. field — for sport
  15. wound — an injury
  16. press — to push
  17. saw — the tool
  18. game — a match
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. field — a subject
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. game — wild animals
  23. snap — to click
  24. root — the cause

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