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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: current · cue · press · content · ground · pound · shower · face

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. current — happening now
  3. press — a publisher
  4. cue — a signal
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. face — to point toward
  7. face — part of the head
  8. current — of water
  9. ground — the earth
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. pound — a weight
  12. cue — a hint
  13. cue — for pool
  14. face — to confront
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. ground — a position
  18. content — happy
  19. press — newspapers
  20. current — electric
  21. content — the amount
  22. shower — rain
  23. press — to push
  24. ground — crushed

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