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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: deal · pit · press · face · wind · fall · shower · bat

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. press — newspapers
  3. press — to push
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. pit — a hole
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. face — to point toward
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. fall — the season
  11. shower — to wash
  12. fall — to drop
  13. face — to confront
  14. shower — rain
  15. deal — to handle
  16. press — a publisher
  17. bat — the animal
  18. fall — to drop
  19. face — part of the head
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. wind — moving air
  23. pit — in a race
  24. wind — moving air

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