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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. capital — money
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. rule — government
  5. press — to push
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. capital — a city
  8. file — a tool
  9. pop — to visit
  10. pop — soda
  11. bank — for money
  12. press — newspapers
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. rule — a law
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. fork — in a road
  17. file — a document
  18. press — a publisher
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. file — a line of people
  21. bank — of a river
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. pop — music
  24. bank — for money

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