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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. field — for sport
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. net — for catching
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. bass — low music
  9. net — after costs
  10. cell — in biology
  11. bank — for money
  12. field — a subject
  13. pound — a weight
  14. bank — for money
  15. field — farmland
  16. bank — of a river
  17. cell — a phone
  18. net — in sport

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