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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: key · face · mug · bank · race · chair · saw · lean

  1. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. lean — thin
  3. saw — the tool
  4. chair — a leader
  5. face — part of the head
  6. bank — for money
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. key — the most important part
  10. race — a contest
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. face — to confront
  13. key — for a lock
  14. bank — of a river
  15. lean — to bend
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — humankind
  18. key — in music
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. mug — to rob
  21. saw — the tool
  22. mug — a face
  23. bank — for money
  24. face — to point toward

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