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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: field · wound · swing · plane · vault · kid · foot · press

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. press — a publisher
  3. foot — a measure
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. field — farmland
  6. press — newspapers
  7. swing — in golf
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. kid — to tease
  10. vault — a safe
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. field — a subject
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. swing — music
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. plane — a tool
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. kid — child
  20. wound — an injury
  21. wound — an injury
  22. swing — to play on
  23. field — for sport
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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