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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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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 · race · wake · foot · arm · swing · spring · press

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. field — for sport
  3. swing — in golf
  4. press — to push
  5. swing — to play on
  6. race — the arms race
  7. spring — of water
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. foot — a measure
  11. press — newspapers
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. wake — a trail
  14. press — a publisher
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. field — farmland
  17. race — humankind
  18. spring — the season
  19. swing — music
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. spring — a coil
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. race — a contest

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