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

Word bank: kick · stand · bank · face · cold · cabinet · content · key

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. face — part of the head
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. bank — for money
  5. face — to confront
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. bank — for money
  11. stand — to bear
  12. key — in music
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. content — happy
  15. kick — in football
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. bank — of a river
  19. key — for a lock
  20. key — the most important part
  21. cold — an illness
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cold — not warm
  24. face — to point toward

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