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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: drill · hand · straw · net · fan · bank · march · current

  1. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. 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. bank — for money
  2. hand — help
  3. current — of water
  4. drill — army training
  5. net — in sport
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. net — after costs
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. current — electric
  10. hand — in cards
  11. drill — the tool
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. bank — of a river
  18. net — for catching
  19. march — the month
  20. march — the month
  21. march — music
  22. drill — a practice
  23. current — happening now
  24. 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