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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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Word bank
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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: kick · tear · shower · press · leaves · saw

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. saw — the tool
  3. shower — to wash
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. saw — the tool
  6. tear — from crying
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. press — a publisher
  9. tear — from crying
  10. press — newspapers
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. press — to push
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. kick — in football
  18. shower — rain

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