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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: bowl · press · bank · swing · fork · roll · deal · clip

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Did you ________________ the button?
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. swing — in golf
  3. fork — in a road
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. swing — to play on
  6. deal — to handle
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. press — a publisher
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. roll — a cake
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. press — newspapers
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. clip — a video
  17. clip — to cut
  18. press — to push
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. bank — for money
  21. roll — a list
  22. clip — for paper
  23. bank — of a river
  24. swing — music

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