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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: wound · dip · key · bank · chair · track · content · mine

  1. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. chair — a leader
  3. key — the most important part
  4. wound — an injury
  5. bank — of a river
  6. bank — for money
  7. dip — to sink
  8. bank — for money
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. content — the amount
  11. track — a song
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. content — happy
  14. mine — for digging
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. key — for a lock
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. track — to keep track
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. wound — an injury
  24. track — a path

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