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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: rest · face · board · cue · tear · field · stock · band

  1. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — goods
  2. rest — a break
  3. rest — what's left
  4. tear — from crying
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. tear — to rip
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. field — for sport
  9. tear — from crying
  10. board — a committee
  11. face — to confront
  12. cue — for pool
  13. field — a subject
  14. band — a ring
  15. face — part of the head
  16. band — a music group
  17. stock — shares
  18. face — to point toward
  19. board — to get on
  20. cue — a signal
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. field — farmland
  23. rest — what's left
  24. cue — a hint

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