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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 116 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: bear · bulb · key · press · race · clip · shower · fall

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. key — in music
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. press — a publisher
  5. shower — rain
  6. fall — the season
  7. shower — to wash
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bear — the animal
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. fall — to drop
  12. clip — a video
  13. press — newspapers
  14. bulb — for light
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. race — the arms race
  17. key — for a lock
  18. race — a contest
  19. bulb — for light
  20. clip — for paper
  21. press — to push
  22. clip — to cut
  23. race — humankind
  24. fall — to drop

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