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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 120 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: drill · shower · mate · saw · root · tube · press · kick

  1. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. root — of a word
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. saw — the tool
  4. shower — to wash
  5. press — a publisher
  6. mate — to breed
  7. press — to push
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. root — of a plant
  10. tube — the underground
  11. tube — a container
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. mate — a partner
  14. kick — in football
  15. saw — the tool
  16. shower — rain
  17. root — the cause
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. drill — a practice
  20. mate — a friend
  21. drill — army training
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. press — newspapers
  24. drill — the tool

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