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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: degree · band · press · dip · spring · lean · board · pitcher

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. band — a music group
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. degree — an amount
  8. band — a ring
  9. lean — thin
  10. board — a committee
  11. press — newspapers
  12. spring — a coil
  13. degree — from a university
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. press — a publisher
  16. spring — of water
  17. dip — to sink
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. lean — to bend
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. spring — the season
  23. degree — temperature
  24. board — to get on

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