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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: rush · field · rash · lie · track · hand · press · sharp

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. rash — hasty
  3. hand — help
  4. field — for sport
  5. rush — hurry
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. press — a publisher
  8. track — a path
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. hand — in cards
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. rash — a series
  13. lie — to recline
  14. track — to keep track
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. track — a song
  17. press — newspapers
  18. field — farmland
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. sharp — clever
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. press — to push

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