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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · ground · cue · ball · net · press · fall · dip

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. press — to push
  3. cue — a hint
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. press — newspapers
  6. cold — not warm
  7. net — for catching
  8. ball — a dance
  9. cue — for pool
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fall — the season
  13. dip — to sink
  14. net — in sport
  15. cue — a signal
  16. ground — a position
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. press — a publisher
  19. cold — an illness
  20. fall — to drop
  21. ground — the earth
  22. ground — crushed
  23. net — after costs
  24. dip — a sauce

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