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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: clip · bay · race · bank · key · cold · press · bowl

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. key — the most important part
  3. clip — to cut
  4. race — humankind
  5. press — a publisher
  6. bank — of a river
  7. cold — an illness
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. press — newspapers
  10. race — a contest
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. race — the arms race
  13. key — for a lock
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. bank — for money
  16. press — to push
  17. cold — not warm
  18. key — in music
  19. clip — for paper
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. clip — a video
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. bowl — to roll

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