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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. press — a publisher
  4. bank — of a river
  5. bound — obliged
  6. file — a tool
  7. press — newspapers
  8. bound — certain
  9. file — a document
  10. wound — an injury
  11. spring — the season
  12. wound — an injury
  13. press — to push
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. spring — a coil
  16. bound — tied together
  17. bank — for money
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. spring — of water
  20. file — a line of people
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. bank — for money
  24. wind — moving air

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