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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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Word bank
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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: rule · clip · game · field · bay · bank · shower · stand

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. bank — for money
  5. bank — of a river
  6. field — for sport
  7. clip — to cut
  8. rule — government
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. shower — to wash
  13. field — farmland
  14. game — a match
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. bank — for money
  17. clip — for paper
  18. clip — a video
  19. field — a subject
  20. game — wild animals
  21. rule — a law
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. shower — rain

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