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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: land · club · scale · bank · bay · game · nail · cold

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  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 — for money
  2. game — a match
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. scale — size or range
  6. land — to come down
  7. club — for golf
  8. scale — in music
  9. club — a group
  10. cold — not warm
  11. bank — for money
  12. bank — of a river
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. club — for dancing
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. game — wild animals
  20. cold — an illness
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. land — a country
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. land — ground

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