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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: date · chip · field · press · scale · tear · arm · present

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. scale — size or range
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. present — a gift
  6. date — the fruit
  7. tear — from crying
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. chip — for betting
  10. press — to push
  11. field — for sport
  12. field — a subject
  13. field — farmland
  14. chip — to eat
  15. tear — from crying
  16. scale — in music
  17. tear — to rip
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. present — the time now
  20. press — a publisher
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. press — newspapers
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. arm — part of the body

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