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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: band · press · ball · can · branch · pitch · cap · mine

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  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. cap — a hat
  2. can — a tin
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. mine — for digging
  5. cap — a lid
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. press — to push
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. ball — a great time
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. cap — of ice
  13. can — a tin
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. press — newspapers
  16. ball — a dance
  17. band — a music group
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. branch — a division
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. band — a ring
  22. can — to be able to
  23. pitch — completely
  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