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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: field · saw · row · bark · rest · bat · pass · bank

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. rest — what's left
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. field — farmland
  5. row — to paddle
  6. bank — for money
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. bark — to shout
  9. bank — for money
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. field — for sport
  12. saw — the tool
  13. field — a subject
  14. row — a line
  15. pass — to spend time
  16. rest — what's left
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. bank — of a river
  20. bat — the animal
  21. pass — a permit
  22. rest — a break
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. row — a quarrel

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