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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: row · kick · face · staff · pitcher · leaves · cold · press

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. row — a line
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. face — to confront
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. row — to paddle
  8. cold — not warm
  9. press — a publisher
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. press — newspapers
  12. staff — employees
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. press — to push
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. staff — employees
  18. face — part of the head
  19. face — to point toward
  20. cold — an illness
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. kick — in football
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. staff — a stick

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