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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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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 · press · pitcher · sharp · current · fall · ground · kick

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. kick — in football
  3. press — newspapers
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. sharp — clever
  6. fall — to drop
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. cold — an illness
  9. fall — to drop
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. press — a publisher
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. ground — a position
  14. current — electric
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. current — happening now
  17. ground — crushed
  18. press — to push
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. current — of water
  22. cold — not warm
  23. fall — the season
  24. sharp — with an edge

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