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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: drill · land · sharp · rush · bank · field · net · cap

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. bank — for money
  3. rush — hurry
  4. bank — for money
  5. drill — a practice
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. field — for sport
  8. cap — of ice
  9. cap — a hat
  10. net — in sport
  11. land — a country
  12. field — farmland
  13. land — to come down
  14. drill — the tool
  15. cap — a lid
  16. net — after costs
  17. sharp — clever
  18. field — a subject
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. net — for catching
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. drill — army training
  24. land — ground

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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