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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: press · face · mug · last · hand · rush · clip · branch

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. rush — hurry
  3. clip — for paper
  4. branch — a division
  5. hand — help
  6. press — newspapers
  7. clip — to cut
  8. face — part of the head
  9. hand — in cards
  10. face — to point toward
  11. mug — to rob
  12. last — finally
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. mug — a cup
  16. clip — a video
  17. press — to push
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. last — final
  22. mug — a face
  23. press — a publisher
  24. face — to confront

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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