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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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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: cold · ground · drill · fine · pass · bank · content · rock

  1. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. bank — of a river
  3. ground — the earth
  4. ground — a position
  5. cold — an illness
  6. drill — a practice
  7. pass — a permit
  8. bank — for money
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. content — the amount
  11. drill — army training
  12. fine — all right
  13. content — happy
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. rock — a stone
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. fine — high quality
  19. rock — music
  20. cold — not warm
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. ground — crushed
  23. drill — the tool
  24. content — videos and posts

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