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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: fall · march · bound · drill · board · field · lie · current

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. board — a committee
  3. march — music
  4. drill — a practice
  5. field — for sport
  6. bound — tied together
  7. field — a subject
  8. current — of water
  9. fall — the season
  10. lie — to recline
  11. field — farmland
  12. bound — obliged
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. drill — army training
  16. drill — the tool
  17. current — electric
  18. board — to get on
  19. march — the month
  20. fall — to drop
  21. bound — certain
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. march — the month
  24. current — happening now

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