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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: press · perch · bank · wound · ground · band · stock · chest

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. wound — an injury
  3. chest — a box
  4. stock — goods
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. band — a ring
  8. band — a music group
  9. stock — shares
  10. ground — crushed
  11. perch — the fish
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bank — of a river
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. chest — of your body
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. ground — the earth
  18. wound — an injury
  19. ground — a position
  20. press — newspapers
  21. bank — for money
  22. bank — for money
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. press — a publisher

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