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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. cold — not warm
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. bank — for money
  6. bank — for money
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. bank — of a river
  9. rest — what's left
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. rest — what's left
  12. band — a ring
  13. court — of a king
  14. court — of law
  15. press — to push
  16. court — for sport
  17. band — a music group
  18. shower — rain
  19. press — newspapers
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. press — a publisher
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. rest — a break
  24. lie — to recline

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