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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: face · press · bank · shower · march · prune · board · chest

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. march — the month
  3. chest — of your body
  4. board — to get on
  5. shower — to wash
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. chest — of your body
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. board — a committee
  10. shower — rain
  11. bank — of a river
  12. face — to point toward
  13. march — music
  14. march — the month
  15. face — part of the head
  16. prune — to trim
  17. press — newspapers
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. chest — a box
  20. bank — for money
  21. press — a publisher
  22. prune — to trim
  23. press — to push
  24. bank — for money

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