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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 · band · swing · can · firm · current · face · board

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. swing — music
  4. current — of water
  5. can — a tin
  6. firm — a company
  7. face — part of the head
  8. field — a subject
  9. band — a ring
  10. firm — steady
  11. board — a committee
  12. field — for sport
  13. swing — to play on
  14. band — a music group
  15. current — electric
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. firm — decided
  18. face — to point toward
  19. board — to get on
  20. current — happening now
  21. can — to be able to
  22. can — a tin
  23. swing — in golf
  24. face — to confront

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