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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. stand — to bear
  3. face — to point toward
  4. fall — to drop
  5. press — a publisher
  6. saw — the tool
  7. cold — an illness
  8. cold — not warm
  9. fall — to drop
  10. fall — the season
  11. press — to push
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. rush — hurry
  15. face — to confront
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. tear — from crying
  18. press — newspapers
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — to rip
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. saw — the tool

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