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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 116 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: cap · band · mouse · scale · drill · net · press · shower

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. net — after costs
  3. scale — in music
  4. press — to push
  5. shower — to wash
  6. drill — a practice
  7. cap — a hat
  8. press — newspapers
  9. shower — rain
  10. drill — the tool
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. net — for catching
  14. cap — a lid
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. scale — size or range
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. cap — of ice
  20. drill — army training
  21. band — a music group
  22. net — in sport
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. press — a publisher

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