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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 120 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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. bank — for money
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. bulb — for light
  5. net — in sport
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. field — for sport
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. bass — low music
  11. cell — in biology
  12. field — farmland
  13. net — after costs
  14. field — a subject
  15. clip — for paper
  16. perch — the fish
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bass — the fish
  19. clip — a video
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. clip — to cut
  22. cell — a phone
  23. net — for catching
  24. bank — for money

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