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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: sharp · tear · jam · season · press · plane · mine · coach

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. season — of the year
  3. jam — in traffic
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. press — to push
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. press — a publisher
  9. mine — for digging
  10. press — newspapers
  11. season — in sport
  12. plane — a tool
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. tear — to rip
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. tear — from crying
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. sharp — clever
  24. plane — in geometry

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