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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. cue — a hint
  3. drill — a practice
  4. current — electric
  5. cue — for pool
  6. press — a publisher
  7. tear — from crying
  8. tear — to rip
  9. tear — from crying
  10. press — to push
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. fall — the season
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. current — happening now
  15. drill — army training
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. fall — to drop
  18. fall — to drop
  19. shower — rain
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. drill — the tool
  22. shower — to wash
  23. cue — a signal
  24. press — newspapers

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