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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: jam · press · hand · roll · key · band · wound · land

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. jam — in traffic
  3. press — a publisher
  4. wound — an injury
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. band — a music group
  7. press — newspapers
  8. hand — in cards
  9. key — in music
  10. wound — an injury
  11. land — ground
  12. land — a country
  13. key — for a lock
  14. roll — a cake
  15. band — a ring
  16. key — the most important part
  17. jam — a tight spot
  18. roll — a list
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. press — to push
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. land — to come down

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