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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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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. fork — in a road
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. key — in music
  6. press — a publisher
  7. lean — thin
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. key — the most important part
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. cold — not warm
  16. bank — of a river
  17. lean — to bend
  18. band — a music group
  19. press — to push
  20. cold — an illness
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. key — for a lock
  23. press — newspapers
  24. band — a ring

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