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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: chair · nail · ground · pitcher · shower · lie · rule · press

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. rule — a law
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. press — to push
  8. shower — to wash
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. press — newspapers
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. shower — rain
  16. rule — government
  17. press — a publisher
  18. ground — the earth
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. lie — to recline
  21. ground — crushed
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. chair — a leader
  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