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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: pitcher · tear · press · mouse · drill · shower · trunk · cell

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. tear — from crying
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. press — a publisher
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. press — newspapers
  8. cell — in biology
  9. drill — army training
  10. press — to push
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. cell — a phone
  15. shower — rain
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. drill — the tool
  20. drill — a practice
  21. shower — to wash
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. tear — from crying
  24. trunk — of a car

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