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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 120 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: prune · capital · face · press · field · hide · ball · pop

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. face — to point toward
  3. pop — to visit
  4. press — newspapers
  5. press — a publisher
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. field — a subject
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. field — farmland
  11. prune — to trim
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. pop — soda
  14. prune — to trim
  15. press — to push
  16. capital — money
  17. ball — a dance
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. field — for sport
  20. pop — music
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. capital — a city
  23. ball — a great time
  24. face — part of the head

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