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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 · race · degree · can · shower · bore · bat · pit

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bore — to tire
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. race — humankind
  6. degree — from a university
  7. bore — to drill
  8. race — a contest
  9. race — the arms race
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. can — to be able to
  12. pit — a hole
  13. degree — an amount
  14. shower — rain
  15. bat — the animal
  16. can — a tin
  17. press — a publisher
  18. press — newspapers
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. pit — in a race
  21. shower — to wash
  22. press — to push
  23. can — a tin
  24. degree — temperature

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