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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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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 · hide · shower · stick · bear

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — to rip
  5. press — newspapers
  6. shower — rain
  7. bear — the animal
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. press — a publisher
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. press — to push
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. bear — the animal
  17. tear — from crying
  18. stick — a piece of wood

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