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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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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: press · safe · wind · game · squash · bank · clip · root

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. root — of a word
  3. bank — of a river
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wind — moving air
  6. bank — for money
  7. squash — the sport
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. game — a match
  10. press — a publisher
  11. clip — a video
  12. squash — to crush
  13. root — the cause
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. clip — to cut
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. press — to push
  20. root — of a plant
  21. game — wild animals
  22. press — newspapers
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. bank — for money

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