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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: straw · dip · pound · roll · band · press · mark · club

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. press — a publisher
  6. club — a group
  7. roll — a cake
  8. mark — a trace
  9. dip — to sink
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. club — for dancing
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. band — a ring
  14. press — to push
  15. mark — a grade
  16. band — a music group
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. pound — for dogs
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. press — newspapers
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. roll — a list
  24. pound — a weight

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