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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 120 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: board · ground · content · straw · land · bank · chest · pound

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. bank — for money
  3. chest — of your body
  4. pound — a weight
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. land — ground
  7. chest — a box
  8. bank — of a river
  9. ground — crushed
  10. content — the amount
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. board — a committee
  15. ground — a position
  16. bank — for money
  17. ground — the earth
  18. content — happy
  19. chest — of your body
  20. board — to get on
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. land — a country
  24. board — a flat piece

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