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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: wound · charge · band · bay · chest · fan · straw · press

  1. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. wound — an injury
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. press — a publisher
  8. charge — in control
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. chest — a box
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. press — to push
  14. chest — of your body
  15. band — a ring
  16. charge — a price
  17. wound — an injury
  18. charge — electricity
  19. chest — of your body
  20. press — newspapers
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. band — a music group
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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