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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: chair · bank · bat · press · rash · bulb · field · trunk

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. bank — for money
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. field — farmland
  5. field — for sport
  6. press — a publisher
  7. rash — hasty
  8. press — to push
  9. bulb — for light
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. chair — a leader
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. bat — the animal
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. rash — a series
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bank — for money
  20. press — newspapers
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. bank — of a river
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. bat — in an idiom

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