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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: fan · rock · fork · squash · press · ground · shower · tear

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. press — a publisher
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. press — newspapers
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. ground — the earth
  11. press — to push
  12. squash — to crush
  13. ground — crushed
  14. rock — a stone
  15. tear — from crying
  16. rock — music
  17. shower — rain
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. fork — in a road
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. ground — a position
  22. tear — to rip
  23. tear — from crying
  24. shower — to wash

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