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

Word bank: staff · cold · mug · band · press · object · branch · file

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. cold — an illness
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. file — a tool
  5. mug — to rob
  6. press — to push
  7. press — a publisher
  8. mug — a cup
  9. branch — a division
  10. cold — not warm
  11. file — a line of people
  12. object — an aim
  13. press — newspapers
  14. staff — a stick
  15. object — to protest
  16. file — a document
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. staff — employees
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. staff — employees
  21. mug — a face
  22. band — a ring
  23. object — a thing
  24. band — a music group

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