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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 · season · roll · track · wound · swing · board · stock

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. stock — goods
  3. wound — an injury
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. roll — a list
  7. roll — a cake
  8. wound — an injury
  9. swing — in golf
  10. drill — the tool
  11. track — a path
  12. board — a committee
  13. swing — music
  14. track — to keep track
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. drill — army training
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. swing — to play on
  19. season — in sport
  20. season — of the year
  21. stock — shares
  22. board — to get on
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. drill — a practice

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