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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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Word bank
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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: march · press · band · tear · dip · ruler

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. press — a publisher
  4. press — to push
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. march — the month
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. dip — to sink
  11. band — a ring
  12. dip — a sauce
  13. band — a music group
  14. march — music
  15. march — the month
  16. tear — from crying
  17. press — newspapers
  18. tear — to rip

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