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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. spring — a coil
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. bank — for money
  6. fall — to drop
  7. file — a document
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. charge — in control
  10. file — a line of people
  11. charge — a price
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. fall — the season
  14. band — a music group
  15. bank — of a river
  16. fall — to drop
  17. charge — electricity
  18. bank — for money
  19. press — to push
  20. band — a ring
  21. press — a publisher
  22. press — newspapers
  23. spring — the season
  24. file — a tool

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