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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: cold · shower · fan · season · drill · rush · patient · press

  1. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. press — newspapers
  3. shower — to wash
  4. press — a publisher
  5. rush — hurry
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. drill — the tool
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. press — to push
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. drill — army training
  14. drill — a practice
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. cold — an illness
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. shower — rain
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. season — in sport
  23. cold — not warm
  24. fan — to cool the air

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