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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: shower · mouse · capital · race · saw · press

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. shower — rain
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. shower — to wash
  5. capital — money
  6. saw — the tool
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. saw — the tool
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. capital — a city
  11. race — humankind
  12. race — a contest
  13. press — a publisher
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. press — to push
  17. press — newspapers
  18. mouse — the animal

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