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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: wave · press · tear · present · suit · spring · fall · bat

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. tear — from crying
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. spring — the season
  6. spring — of water
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. fall — the season
  9. suit — in cards
  10. press — newspapers
  11. suit — clothes
  12. fall — to drop
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. present — the time now
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. suit — to fit
  17. tear — to rip
  18. present — there
  19. spring — a coil
  20. press — a publisher
  21. fall — to drop
  22. bat — the animal
  23. present — a gift
  24. press — to push

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