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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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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: fall · racket · mine · season · shower · kid · press · rock

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. season — of the year
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. shower — to wash
  6. shower — rain
  7. kid — to tease
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. season — in sport
  13. mine — for digging
  14. press — a publisher
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. fall — the season
  17. rock — a stone
  18. press — newspapers
  19. fall — to drop
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. fall — to drop
  22. press — to push
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. rock — music

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