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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 · vault · shower · fork · kick · fall · pop · wake

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. fall — to drop
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. pop — soda
  8. fork — in a road
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. press — newspapers
  11. shower — to wash
  12. pop — to visit
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. kick — in football
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. shower — rain
  17. press — a publisher
  18. vault — a safe
  19. wake — a trail
  20. fall — to drop
  21. fall — the season
  22. pop — music
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. wake — before a funeral

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