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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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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: coach · calf · press · pitcher · mate · cold · shower · fan

  1. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. press — to push
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. press — newspapers
  9. press — a publisher
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. shower — to wash
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. shower — rain
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. mate — to breed
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. cold — not warm
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. calf — of the leg
  24. mate — a partner

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