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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: chair · bank · land · drill · press · row · face · content

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  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. press — to push
  2. press — a publisher
  3. face — part of the head
  4. bank — for money
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. content — happy
  8. bank — for money
  9. row — to paddle
  10. press — newspapers
  11. face — to point toward
  12. content — the amount
  13. drill — the tool
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. drill — a practice
  16. land — to come down
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. row — a line
  19. face — to confront
  20. land — ground
  21. drill — army training
  22. land — a country
  23. chair — a leader
  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