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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 116 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: press · kid · tear · chair · dip · bank · lash · fine

  1. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. chair — a leader
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. tear — to rip
  5. bank — of a river
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. bank — for money
  8. press — newspapers
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. kid — to tease
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. fine — high quality
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. tear — from crying
  17. kid — child
  18. press — to push
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. tear — from crying
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. fine — all right
  23. dip — to sink
  24. press — a publisher

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