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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: leaves · mug · press · shower · drill · foot · band · mine

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. press — a publisher
  3. press — newspapers
  4. mine — for digging
  5. shower — to wash
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. drill — army training
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. drill — a practice
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. mug — to rob
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. mug — a cup
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. band — a music group
  17. drill — the tool
  18. shower — rain
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. foot — a measure
  23. mug — a face
  24. band — a ring

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