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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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. kid — to tease
  3. band — a music group
  4. press — a publisher
  5. cap — a lid
  6. kid — child
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. branch — a division
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. cap — of ice
  11. net — after costs
  12. band — a ring
  13. stand — for spectators
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. press — newspapers
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. stand — to bear
  18. staff — employees
  19. cap — a hat
  20. net — in sport
  21. net — for catching
  22. staff — a stick
  23. staff — employees
  24. stand — on your feet

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