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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: fall · straw · spell · field · craft · bank · row · bound

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. field — farmland
  4. fall — the season
  5. fall — to drop
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. bank — for money
  8. bank — of a river
  9. craft — a skill
  10. row — to paddle
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. spell — letters
  13. craft — boats
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. spell — magic
  16. row — a line
  17. spell — a short time
  18. fall — to drop
  19. field — for sport
  20. bound — certain
  21. bound — tied together
  22. bank — for money
  23. field — a subject
  24. bound — obliged

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