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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: press · mug · pop · band · pound · squash · bay · cell

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. press — a publisher
  3. squash — the sport
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. mug — to rob
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. cell — in biology
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. pop — music
  10. squash — to crush
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. band — a music group
  13. band — a ring
  14. pop — to visit
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. press — to push
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. pound — a weight
  20. pop — soda
  21. mug — a cup
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. cell — a phone
  24. press — newspapers

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