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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cold · tube · hand · press · pitcher · racket · fork · pop

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. cold — not warm
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. press — newspapers
  5. cold — an illness
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. hand — help
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. pop — to visit
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. tube — a container
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. tube — the underground
  14. pop — music
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. hand — in cards
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. press — a publisher
  21. fork — in a road
  22. pop — soda
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. pitcher — a jug

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