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

Word bank: tear · bank · present · roll · key · temple · file · cell

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. key — for a lock
  3. roll — a list
  4. bank — for money
  5. tear — from crying
  6. tear — to rip
  7. key — in music
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. cell — in biology
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. tear — from crying
  12. bank — of a river
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. present — the time now
  15. bank — for money
  16. cell — a phone
  17. file — a document
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. roll — a cake
  20. file — a line of people
  21. file — a tool
  22. key — the most important part
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. present — there

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