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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. temple — side of the head
  4. clip — a video
  5. clip — for paper
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. bank — of a river
  9. march — music
  10. march — the month
  11. bank — for money
  12. file — a line of people
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. file — a document
  15. wind — moving air
  16. press — newspapers
  17. file — a tool
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. press — a publisher
  21. wind — moving air
  22. clip — to cut
  23. march — the month
  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