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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: cabinet · rash · press · scale · lean · fall · field · fan

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. rash — hasty
  3. press — a publisher
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. scale — in music
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. field — a subject
  8. field — farmland
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. lean — thin
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. fall — the season
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. press — newspapers
  18. lean — to bend
  19. rash — a series
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. press — to push
  22. fall — to drop
  23. scale — size or range
  24. lean — to rest against

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