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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: band · last · press · leaves · kid · bore · degree · prune

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. press — a publisher
  3. press — newspapers
  4. degree — an amount
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. last — to go on
  7. degree — from a university
  8. bore — to tire
  9. last — final
  10. band — a ring
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. kid — to tease
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. kid — child
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bore — to drill
  17. last — finally
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. prune — to trim
  20. press — to push
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. degree — temperature
  24. band — a music group

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