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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 116 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: nail · rule · spring · straw · rush · press · kid · tear

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. press — to push
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. spring — a coil
  7. rush — hurry
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. press — newspapers
  11. tear — from crying
  12. kid — child
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. rule — a law
  15. rule — government
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. spring — the season
  18. tear — to rip
  19. press — a publisher
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. kid — to tease
  23. spring — of water
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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