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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: straw · pass · row · racket · fall · bank · bark · field

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. bank — of a river
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. field — for sport
  6. field — farmland
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. row — to paddle
  11. bank — for money
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. fall — to drop
  15. pass — a permit
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. row — a line
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. fall — to drop
  20. bark — to shout
  21. fall — the season
  22. field — a subject
  23. bank — for money
  24. pass — to succeed

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