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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: scale · clip · chest · fall · cue · fine · shower · press

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. cue — for pool
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fall — the season
  6. cue — a signal
  7. scale — size or range
  8. shower — rain
  9. fine — high quality
  10. chest — of your body
  11. press — newspapers
  12. cue — a hint
  13. press — to push
  14. chest — a box
  15. clip — a video
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. clip — to cut
  18. fall — to drop
  19. scale — in music
  20. chest — of your body
  21. shower — to wash
  22. press — a publisher
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. fine — all right

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