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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 · press · dip · bank · tear · mug · race · march

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Did you ________________ the button?
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. march — the month
  3. mug — a cup
  4. degree — from a university
  5. mug — to rob
  6. press — to push
  7. bank — for money
  8. bank — of a river
  9. race — humankind
  10. march — the month
  11. mug — a face
  12. degree — an amount
  13. press — a publisher
  14. bank — for money
  15. dip — to sink
  16. race — a contest
  17. march — music
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. tear — from crying
  20. race — the arms race
  21. tear — from crying
  22. degree — temperature
  23. press — newspapers
  24. tear — to rip

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