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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 120 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. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. pop — soda
  3. press — to push
  4. drill — a practice
  5. band — a ring
  6. cap — a hat
  7. hand — help
  8. bound — obliged
  9. cap — a lid
  10. press — newspapers
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. bound — certain
  13. pop — to visit
  14. pop — music
  15. band — a music group
  16. hand — in cards
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. cap — of ice
  19. drill — army training
  20. drill — the tool
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. bound — tied together
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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