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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: bank · shower · scale · land · current · bass · field · bore

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. bore — gave birth
  3. bank — for money
  4. bank — for money
  5. field — a subject
  6. land — to come down
  7. current — of water
  8. bass — the fish
  9. shower — rain
  10. bore — to drill
  11. current — happening now
  12. land — ground
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. current — electric
  15. field — for sport
  16. scale — in music
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. scale — size or range
  19. bass — low music
  20. land — a country
  21. bank — of a river
  22. shower — to wash
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. bore — to tire

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