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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 120 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: shower · lie · content · dip · land · press · pitcher · rock

  1. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. rock — music
  5. shower — to wash
  6. content — the amount
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. shower — rain
  9. press — to push
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. land — a country
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. land — to come down
  17. land — ground
  18. rock — a stone
  19. dip — to sink
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. content — happy
  22. press — a publisher
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. press — newspapers

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