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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. tear — from crying
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. wind — moving air
  8. tear — to rip
  9. press — newspapers
  10. bank — of a river
  11. bank — for money
  12. wind — moving air
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. stem — to come from
  15. bank — for money
  16. band — a music group
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. tear — from crying
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. press — a publisher
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. perch — the fish
  24. band — a ring

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