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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: bank · fall · tube · present · stick · press · coach · shower

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. bank — for money
  3. press — a publisher
  4. present — there
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. shower — rain
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — the season
  10. bank — for money
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. bank — of a river
  14. press — to push
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. tube — a container
  17. shower — to wash
  18. fall — to drop
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. press — newspapers
  22. present — a gift
  23. tube — the underground
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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