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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. press — a publisher
  3. net — after costs
  4. press — newspapers
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. drill — army training
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. drill — the tool
  10. band — a ring
  11. drill — a practice
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. press — to push
  14. board — to get on
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. board — a committee
  17. net — for catching
  18. capital — a city
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. dip — to sink
  21. band — a music group
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. capital — money
  24. net — in sport

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