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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: press · field · nail · firm · fan · squash · last · wave

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. field — for sport
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. last — final
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. last — finally
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. press — newspapers
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. press — a publisher
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. field — a subject
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. last — to go on
  17. firm — decided
  18. firm — steady
  19. squash — the sport
  20. field — farmland
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. firm — a company
  24. press — to push

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