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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: chest · pass · mate · jam · rush · face · press · game

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. mate — to breed
  3. face — part of the head
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. face — to confront
  6. game — a match
  7. rush — hurry
  8. press — newspapers
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. face — to point toward
  11. press — to push
  12. mate — a friend
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — a box
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. pass — a permit
  17. chest — of your body
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. game — wild animals
  23. mate — a partner
  24. pass — to spend time

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