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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: ruler · staff · cell · perch · ground · cold · band · press

  1. There's no middle ________________.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — a position
  2. press — a publisher
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. band — a music group
  6. cold — not warm
  7. ground — the earth
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. press — to push
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. band — a ring
  12. staff — a stick
  13. perch — the fish
  14. staff — employees
  15. cold — an illness
  16. staff — employees
  17. cell — in biology
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. cell — a phone
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. ground — crushed
  23. press — newspapers
  24. perch — for a bird

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