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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: row · bank · drill · rest · net · mine · cap · roll

  1. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. net — for catching
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. net — in sport
  5. net — after costs
  6. bank — for money
  7. mine — for digging
  8. rest — what's left
  9. cap — a hat
  10. rest — a break
  11. cap — a lid
  12. row — to paddle
  13. row — a line
  14. cap — of ice
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. drill — the tool
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. roll — a list
  19. roll — a cake
  20. bank — for money
  21. bank — of a river
  22. rest — what's left
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. drill — a practice

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