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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: chest · fan · branch · key · clip · firm · last · press

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chest — a box
  6. branch — a division
  7. chest — of your body
  8. press — newspapers
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. firm — steady
  11. firm — decided
  12. press — a publisher
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. key — the most important part
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. clip — for paper
  17. last — to go on
  18. key — for a lock
  19. press — to push
  20. last — finally
  21. clip — to cut
  22. last — final
  23. firm — a company
  24. key — in music

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