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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: bound · bear · arm · chip · mine · press · band · tear

  1. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — for betting
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. bear — the animal
  5. band — a music group
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. tear — from crying
  9. bound — obliged
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. tear — to rip
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. press — a publisher
  15. bear — the animal
  16. chip — to eat
  17. press — to push
  18. bound — tied together
  19. bound — certain
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. press — newspapers
  22. band — a ring
  23. tear — from crying
  24. arm — part of the body

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