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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: wound · bank · can · land · row · foot · field · degree

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. bank — for money
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. land — to come down
  5. wound — an injury
  6. row — to paddle
  7. bank — of a river
  8. wound — an injury
  9. can — to be able to
  10. land — ground
  11. land — a country
  12. field — for sport
  13. foot — a measure
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. can — a tin
  16. can — a tin
  17. degree — an amount
  18. field — a subject
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. row — a line
  21. field — farmland
  22. degree — from a university
  23. bank — for money
  24. foot — the bottom

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