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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 116 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 piece is in a major ________________.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. firm — steady
  3. press — a publisher
  4. clip — for paper
  5. firm — a company
  6. hand — help
  7. cap — of ice
  8. key — the most important part
  9. band — a music group
  10. bank — for money
  11. key — for a lock
  12. clip — a video
  13. band — a ring
  14. cap — a lid
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. firm — decided
  17. cap — a hat
  18. press — newspapers
  19. hand — in cards
  20. press — to push
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. bank — for money
  23. bank — of a river
  24. clip — to cut

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