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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 120 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: row · land · mug · kick · press · band · ruler · degree

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. mug — a cup
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. row — a line
  6. press — a publisher
  7. row — to paddle
  8. land — a country
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. kick — in football
  11. degree — temperature
  12. mug — to rob
  13. degree — an amount
  14. ruler — a monarch
  15. land — ground
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. press — newspapers
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. band — a ring
  20. degree — from a university
  21. mug — a face
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. band — a music group
  24. land — to come down

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