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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: hand · wind · squash · rest · rock · jam · lean · press

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. wind — moving air
  3. press — a publisher
  4. press — newspapers
  5. rock — music
  6. squash — to crush
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. lean — thin
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. rock — a stone
  16. rest — what's left
  17. hand — in cards
  18. rest — a break
  19. lean — to bend
  20. wind — moving air
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. press — to push
  23. squash — the sport
  24. rest — what's left

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