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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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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: content · deal · chip · bank · shower · mine · tube · press

  1. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Did you ________________ the button?
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. shower — rain
  3. bank — for money
  4. press — a publisher
  5. press — to push
  6. mine — for digging
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. shower — to wash
  9. tube — the underground
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. chip — to eat
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. chip — for betting
  14. content — happy
  15. content — the amount
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. bank — of a river
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. press — newspapers
  21. tube — a container
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. deal — to handle

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