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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: bore · cold · season · stick · march · fall · press · lash

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Did you ________________ the button?
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. fall — to drop
  3. bore — to tire
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. cold — not warm
  6. press — newspapers
  7. cold — an illness
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. press — a publisher
  11. fall — to drop
  12. press — to push
  13. march — the month
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. season — of the year
  20. season — in sport
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. bore — to drill
  23. march — music
  24. march — the month

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