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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 120 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: stock · bound · current · leaves · field · band · club · cap

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  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. field — farmland
  2. club — for golf
  3. current — electric
  4. bound — tied together
  5. cap — of ice
  6. field — a subject
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. band — a ring
  9. club — for dancing
  10. club — a group
  11. cap — a lid
  12. stock — goods
  13. bound — obliged
  14. band — a music group
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. cap — a hat
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. field — for sport
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. stock — shares
  22. bound — certain
  23. current — of water
  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