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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: key · pop · cold · chair · can · bank · clip · press

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. bank — for money
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. key — in music
  5. press — to push
  6. clip — for paper
  7. key — for a lock
  8. can — a tin
  9. press — newspapers
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. can — a tin
  12. cold — not warm
  13. pop — to visit
  14. bank — for money
  15. pop — music
  16. chair — a leader
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. pop — soda
  19. bank — of a river
  20. cold — an illness
  21. clip — a video
  22. press — a publisher
  23. clip — to cut
  24. can — to be able to

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