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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: tear · last · shower · face · stock · bound · press · sharp

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — from crying
  4. last — to go on
  5. press — newspapers
  6. last — final
  7. shower — rain
  8. face — to confront
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. bound — obliged
  11. stock — shares
  12. sharp — clever
  13. press — a publisher
  14. face — part of the head
  15. stock — goods
  16. shower — to wash
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. face — to point toward
  19. bound — certain
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. last — finally
  22. bound — tied together
  23. tear — to rip
  24. sharp — exactly

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