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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: chair · press · bank · wake · content · mouse · club · wound

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. press — a publisher
  4. wound — an injury
  5. club — for dancing
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. wake — a trail
  9. wound — an injury
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. bank — for money
  12. club — a group
  13. press — to push
  14. club — for golf
  15. press — newspapers
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. bank — of a river
  18. content — happy
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. chair — a leader
  23. bank — for money
  24. mouse — the animal

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