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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: net · cell · field · bear · bank · pound

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

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

Answer key

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