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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: stem · press · face · swing · ground · shower · tube · stock

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. swing — in golf
  3. press — a publisher
  4. face — to point toward
  5. stock — goods
  6. shower — rain
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. face — part of the head
  9. stock — shares
  10. ground — the earth
  11. ground — a position
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. face — to confront
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. swing — to play on
  17. shower — to wash
  18. swing — music
  19. stem — to come from
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. tube — the underground
  22. press — to push
  23. ground — crushed
  24. press — newspapers

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