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

  1. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. press — to push
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. tear — from crying
  7. press — newspapers
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. tear — from crying
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. capital — money
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. tear — to rip
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. stem — a stem cell
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. capital — a city
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. press — a publisher
  22. stem — to come from
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. rush — hurry

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