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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. band — a ring
  4. bass — low music
  5. roll — a list
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. rash — a series
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. roll — a cake
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. rash — hasty
  16. bass — the fish
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. kick — in football
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. press — newspapers
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. press — a publisher
  24. band — a music group

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