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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: branch · cold · can · pitcher · kick · shower · wound · press

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. kick — in football
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. shower — rain
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. shower — to wash
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. press — to push
  11. wound — an injury
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. can — to be able to
  14. branch — a division
  15. cold — not warm
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. cold — an illness
  18. wound — an injury
  19. press — a publisher
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. press — newspapers
  22. can — a tin
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. branch — of a bank

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