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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 · stem · field · band · calf · board · swing · perch

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. perch — the fish
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. board — a committee
  6. band — a ring
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. drill — a practice
  9. drill — army training
  10. swing — music
  11. field — for sport
  12. stem — to come from
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. field — farmland
  17. board — to get on
  18. swing — in golf
  19. field — a subject
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. drill — the tool
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. swing — to play on
  24. stem — of a plant

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