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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. swing — in golf
  3. key — for a lock
  4. bank — of a river
  5. rash — a series
  6. swing — to play on
  7. band — a music group
  8. bank — for money
  9. rash — hasty
  10. band — a ring
  11. swing — music
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. key — the most important part
  14. key — in music
  15. degree — from a university
  16. degree — temperature
  17. degree — an amount
  18. band — a rubber band

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