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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: stick · kid · shower · pass · cell · hand · charge · press

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. press — to push
  5. kid — child
  6. pass — a permit
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. cell — in biology
  11. shower — to wash
  12. press — a publisher
  13. charge — a price
  14. shower — rain
  15. hand — help
  16. press — newspapers
  17. hand — in cards
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. charge — electricity
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. cell — a phone
  24. charge — in control

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