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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: wind · march · field · straw · stem · stock · club · roll

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. club — for golf
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. club — for dancing
  6. march — the month
  7. march — the month
  8. field — farmland
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. march — music
  11. field — for sport
  12. wind — moving air
  13. roll — a list
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. stock — goods
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. roll — a cake
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. stem — to come from
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. stock — shares
  23. wind — moving air
  24. field — a subject

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