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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. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. file — a tool
  3. cap — a hat
  4. club — for golf
  5. file — a document
  6. firm — steady
  7. file — a line of people
  8. bank — of a river
  9. race — a contest
  10. degree — an amount
  11. race — the arms race
  12. degree — from a university
  13. bank — for money
  14. cap — of ice
  15. degree — temperature
  16. wind — moving air
  17. race — humankind
  18. firm — a company
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. club — a group
  22. club — for dancing
  23. firm — decided
  24. cap — a lid

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