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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: cabinet · cold · press · can · straw · shower · present · net

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. shower — to wash
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. shower — rain
  5. can — to be able to
  6. can — a tin
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. can — a tin
  10. cold — not warm
  11. net — after costs
  12. present — a gift
  13. net — in sport
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. press — newspapers
  16. net — for catching
  17. cold — an illness
  18. present — there
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. press — a publisher
  24. press — to push

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