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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: game · field · spring · foot · drill · net · bank · press

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. net — after costs
  3. press — newspapers
  4. game — wild animals
  5. bank — for money
  6. field — for sport
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. net — for catching
  10. press — to push
  11. field — a subject
  12. net — in sport
  13. bank — of a river
  14. drill — a practice
  15. spring — a coil
  16. spring — of water
  17. press — a publisher
  18. spring — the season
  19. game — a match
  20. foot — a measure
  21. field — farmland
  22. drill — the tool
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. drill — army training

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