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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: staff · mate · swing · season · band · snap · field · press

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. field — farmland
  3. mate — a partner
  4. snap — to click
  5. field — for sport
  6. press — a publisher
  7. staff — employees
  8. press — newspapers
  9. mate — to breed
  10. season — of the year
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. swing — music
  13. press — to push
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. field — a subject
  16. swing — to play on
  17. season — in sport
  18. mate — a friend
  19. band — a music group
  20. staff — a stick
  21. band — a ring
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. swing — in golf
  24. season — to add flavour

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