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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: hide · field · cap · row · bat · bank · pound · cell

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. bank — of a river
  3. pound — a weight
  4. bank — for money
  5. cap — a hat
  6. cell — in biology
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. field — for sport
  9. row — to paddle
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. cap — a lid
  12. row — a line
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. field — farmland
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. cell — a phone
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. cap — of ice
  20. bank — for money
  21. field — a subject
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. bat — the animal
  24. cell — in a prison

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