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

Word bank: staff · pit · deal · straw · band · press

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. pit — in a race
  4. staff — employees
  5. pit — a hole
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. band — a ring
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. press — newspapers
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. press — a publisher
  13. staff — a stick
  14. staff — employees
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. deal — to handle
  18. press — to push

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