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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: temple · press · field · hide · charge · hand · saw · drill

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. charge — a price
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. field — for sport
  5. hand — help
  6. field — a subject
  7. drill — a practice
  8. press — newspapers
  9. press — a publisher
  10. hand — in cards
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. drill — the tool
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. saw — the tool
  16. press — to push
  17. charge — electricity
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. field — farmland
  22. charge — in control
  23. drill — army training
  24. saw — the tool

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