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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: march · press · band · tear · dip · ruler · pop · mine

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. tear — from crying
  4. press — newspapers
  5. tear — to rip
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. pop — music
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. tear — from crying
  10. ruler — a monarch
  11. mine — for digging
  12. march — the month
  13. march — music
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. pop — soda
  17. dip — to sink
  18. pop — to visit
  19. band — a ring
  20. march — the month
  21. press — to push
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. press — a publisher
  24. dip — to dunk

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