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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: foot · face · press · racket · shower · squash · saw · kid

  1. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. kid — child
  3. saw — the tool
  4. kid — to tease
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. squash — to crush
  7. face — part of the head
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. press — a publisher
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. face — to confront
  14. saw — the tool
  15. press — to push
  16. press — newspapers
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. foot — a measure
  19. shower — to wash
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. face — to point toward
  22. squash — the sport
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. shower — rain

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