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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: shower · mate · bay · press · wind · roll · coach · pitch

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. roll — a cake
  3. pitch — completely
  4. press — to push
  5. mate — to breed
  6. mate — a friend
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. wind — moving air
  9. press — newspapers
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. mate — a partner
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. shower — rain
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. press — a publisher
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. shower — to wash
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. roll — a list

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