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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: content · clip · mug · bank · land · field · staff · nail

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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. content — videos and posts
  4. clip — for paper
  5. land — ground
  6. staff — employees
  7. staff — a stick
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. field — for sport
  10. field — farmland
  11. clip — a video
  12. mug — a cup
  13. clip — to cut
  14. nail — on a finger
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. bank — of a river
  17. content — happy
  18. field — a subject
  19. land — a country
  20. mug — a face
  21. staff — employees
  22. content — the amount
  23. bank — for money
  24. mug — to rob

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