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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: face · cold · fork · roll · game · season · coach · press

  1. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. fork — in a road
  5. cold — an illness
  6. face — to point toward
  7. face — to confront
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. roll — a list
  10. face — part of the head
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. roll — a cake
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. press — newspapers
  16. game — wild animals
  17. press — to push
  18. cold — not warm
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. season — of the year
  22. press — a publisher
  23. game — a match
  24. season — in sport

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