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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.

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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: net · cold · fork · tube · safe · press · tear · lean

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. tube — a container
  3. press — newspapers
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. tear — to rip
  7. net — for catching
  8. cold — not warm
  9. fork — in a road
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. lean — to bend
  12. press — a publisher
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. tear — from crying
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. cold — an illness
  17. tear — from crying
  18. net — in sport
  19. net — after costs
  20. press — to push
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. lean — thin

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