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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: shower · bat · lie · kid · firm · press · foot · track

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. kid — child
  4. press — a publisher
  5. firm — steady
  6. track — a path
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. foot — a measure
  9. kid — to tease
  10. shower — to wash
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. track — a song
  14. firm — decided
  15. press — newspapers
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. bat — the animal
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. track — to keep track
  20. lie — to recline
  21. shower — rain
  22. press — to push
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. lie — an untruth

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