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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: present · press · coach · race · roll · field · net · current

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. field — a subject
  3. present — a gift
  4. present — the time now
  5. net — after costs
  6. current — electric
  7. field — farmland
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. field — for sport
  10. race — the arms race
  11. press — newspapers
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. race — a contest
  14. roll — a cake
  15. press — a publisher
  16. present — there
  17. current — happening now
  18. press — to push
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. roll — a list
  21. race — humankind
  22. current — of water
  23. net — for catching
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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