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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: lie · charge · rash · shower · file · ground · press · straw

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. press — to push
  3. charge — a price
  4. press — a publisher
  5. rash — hasty
  6. file — a tool
  7. lie — to recline
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. shower — rain
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. charge — in control
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. press — newspapers
  16. rash — a series
  17. ground — crushed
  18. ground — a position
  19. ground — the earth
  20. file — a line of people
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. charge — electricity
  23. file — a document
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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