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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 116 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 · tear · rash · present · leaves · hide

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. present — a gift
  3. present — the time now
  4. tear — from crying
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. rash — a series
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. rash — hasty
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. tear — from crying
  13. press — a publisher
  14. press — to push
  15. tear — to rip
  16. present — there
  17. press — newspapers
  18. leaves — to go away

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