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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: staff · wound · current · field · chair · cold · key · bank

  1. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. The old man leaned on his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. current — of water
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. field — for sport
  4. wound — an injury
  5. key — the most important part
  6. chair — a leader
  7. staff — employees
  8. bank — for money
  9. bank — of a river
  10. wound — an injury
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. key — in music
  13. current — happening now
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. bank — for money
  16. cold — not warm
  17. current — electric
  18. field — farmland
  19. staff — employees
  20. cold — an illness
  21. field — a subject
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. key — for a lock
  24. staff — a stick

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