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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: stem · saw · ball · press · plane · cold · pass · face

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. stem — to come from
  3. saw — the tool
  4. pass — to spend time
  5. ball — a dance
  6. press — to push
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. ball — a great time
  9. face — to point toward
  10. press — newspapers
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. cold — not warm
  13. pass — a permit
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. cold — an illness
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. press — a publisher
  22. face — part of the head
  23. plane — a tool
  24. face — to confront

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