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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: bat · bank · deal · staff · cold · key · temple · straw

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. key — the most important part
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. key — in music
  5. cold — not warm
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. staff — employees
  9. staff — employees
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. bank — for money
  12. bat — the animal
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. staff — a stick
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. cold — an illness
  19. deal — to handle
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. bank — for money
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. bank — of a river

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