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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 · swing · press · cold · pop · roll · leaves · stick

  1. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. press — newspapers
  2. roll — a list
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. cold — an illness
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. press — a publisher
  8. swing — music
  9. swing — to play on
  10. pop — to visit
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. cold — not warm
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. shower — to wash
  15. roll — a cake
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. pop — soda
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. swing — in golf
  20. press — to push
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. shower — rain
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. pop — music

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