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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 · date · club · present · can · dip · clip · rash

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. club — for dancing
  5. clip — for paper
  6. present — there
  7. clip — to cut
  8. press — newspapers
  9. present — a gift
  10. club — for golf
  11. clip — a video
  12. can — a tin
  13. date — the fruit
  14. can — to be able to
  15. can — a tin
  16. press — a publisher
  17. rash — a series
  18. present — the time now
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. club — a group
  22. dip — to sink
  23. press — to push
  24. rash — on the skin

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