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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.

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: field · date · chest · face · nail · wake · mate · press

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. chest — a box
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. chest — of your body
  6. field — a subject
  7. face — to confront
  8. date — the fruit
  9. face — to point toward
  10. face — part of the head
  11. press — newspapers
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. wake — a trail
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. chest — of your body
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. field — for sport
  19. mate — a partner
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. mate — to breed
  22. press — to push
  23. field — farmland
  24. press — a publisher

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