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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 120 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: rash · tear · drill · pitch · ground · rest · press · race

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. rash — hasty
  3. drill — the tool
  4. press — newspapers
  5. ground — crushed
  6. drill — army training
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. drill — a practice
  9. ground — a position
  10. race — a contest
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. race — the arms race
  13. tear — to rip
  14. tear — from crying
  15. rest — what's left
  16. rash — a series
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. pitch — completely
  19. rest — what's left
  20. press — a publisher
  21. ground — the earth
  22. tear — from crying
  23. press — to push
  24. race — humankind

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