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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: temple · foot · bat · press · cap · tear · fan · file

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. Did you ________________ the button?
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  17. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. foot — a measure
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. tear — from crying
  6. temple — side of the head
  7. cap — a lid
  8. press — to push
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. file — a tool
  12. press — newspapers
  13. tear — from crying
  14. cap — of ice
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. foot — part of the body
  17. file — a line of people
  18. press — a publisher
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. bat — the animal
  21. file — a document
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. cap — a hat

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