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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: bank · rash · land · jam · press · net · roll · hand

  1. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. Did you ________________ the button?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  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. jam — to spread on bread
  2. roll — a list
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. press — to push
  5. hand — in cards
  6. roll — a cake
  7. bank — for money
  8. land — ground
  9. bank — for money
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. net — for catching
  12. bank — of a river
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. press — newspapers
  15. net — in sport
  16. rash — hasty
  17. rash — a series
  18. press — a publisher
  19. hand — help
  20. land — a country
  21. land — to come down
  22. net — after costs
  23. jam — a tight spot
  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