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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: stick · cell · ball · band · clip · press · degree · squash

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. press — newspapers
  4. degree — an amount
  5. cell — in biology
  6. squash — the sport
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. clip — to cut
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. clip — for paper
  11. band — a ring
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. press — to push
  14. press — a publisher
  15. degree — temperature
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. ball — a great time
  18. cell — a phone
  19. ball — a dance
  20. squash — to crush
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. degree — from a university
  24. clip — a video

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