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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: cap · tear · press · fall · rash · racket

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. press — to push
  3. cap — a hat
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. rash — hasty
  6. fall — to drop
  7. tear — from crying
  8. tear — from crying
  9. fall — the season
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. cap — a lid
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. press — newspapers
  14. cap — of ice
  15. press — a publisher
  16. rash — a series
  17. fall — to drop
  18. racket — a loud noise

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