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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: press · coach · pit · tear · patient · squash

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. tear — to rip
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — from crying
  7. pit — in a race
  8. pit — a hole
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. squash — to crush
  11. press — a publisher
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. press — newspapers
  14. squash — the sport
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. press — to push

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