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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: stand · straw · bank · field · pit · wind

  1. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. bank — for money
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. wind — moving air
  5. bank — of a river
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. pit — a hole
  8. stand — to bear
  9. bank — for money
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. field — farmland
  12. pit — in a race
  13. wind — moving air
  14. field — for sport
  15. straw — dry grass
  16. field — a subject
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. stand — on your feet

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