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

Word bank: pit · tear · press · cold · track · safe

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. tear — to rip
  3. track — to keep track
  4. track — a song
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. pit — a hole
  8. cold — not warm
  9. pit — in a race
  10. cold — an illness
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. tear — from crying
  13. tear — from crying
  14. track — a path
  15. press — to push
  16. press — newspapers
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. cold — the Cold War

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