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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 120 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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. bank — for money
  3. key — for a lock
  4. saw — the tool
  5. charge — in control
  6. march — music
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. saw — the tool
  9. key — the most important part
  10. stock — goods
  11. march — the month
  12. stock — shares
  13. degree — temperature
  14. degree — from a university
  15. charge — electricity
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. charge — a price
  19. march — the month
  20. bank — of a river
  21. degree — an amount
  22. key — in music
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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