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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. field — farmland
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. stand — to bear
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. fork — in a road
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. net — in sport
  13. field — a subject
  14. net — after costs
  15. bank — for money
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. bank — of a river
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. bank — for money
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. net — for catching
  24. field — for 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