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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: shower · press · bore · arm · hand · bank · degree · club

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. press — to push
  3. bore — to drill
  4. shower — rain
  5. bank — for money
  6. bank — of a river
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. hand — help
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. bore — to tire
  14. degree — from a university
  15. press — newspapers
  16. degree — temperature
  17. press — a publisher
  18. club — for golf
  19. shower — to wash
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. bank — for money
  22. degree — an amount
  23. hand — in cards
  24. club — for dancing

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