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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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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. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. club — for dancing
  3. shower — rain
  4. lean — thin
  5. lean — to bend
  6. current — electric
  7. press — a publisher
  8. spring — the season
  9. club — a group
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — to rip
  14. current — happening now
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. tear — from crying
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. spring — of water
  19. spring — a coil
  20. shower — to wash
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. current — of water
  23. press — to push
  24. club — for golf

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