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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
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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: band · hand · press · stick · dip · tear · object · field

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. hand — in cards
  3. tear — from crying
  4. band — a music group
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. object — to protest
  9. field — for sport
  10. tear — to rip
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. band — a ring
  14. tear — from crying
  15. field — farmland
  16. dip — to sink
  17. hand — help
  18. object — a thing
  19. object — an aim
  20. press — a publisher
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. press — newspapers
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. press — to push

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