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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: lean · field · band · mine · rock · tube · board · mark

  1. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. field — farmland
  3. band — a ring
  4. board — a committee
  5. band — a music group
  6. tube — a container
  7. tube — the underground
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. rock — music
  10. mark — a grade
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. lean — thin
  14. field — for sport
  15. mine — for digging
  16. board — to get on
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. mark — a trace
  20. lean — to bend
  21. tube — in a tire
  22. rock — a stone
  23. field — a subject
  24. rock — to move gently

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