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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 · wake · cue · tear · season · stock · toast · mine

  1. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. tear — to rip
  4. tear — from crying
  5. field — a subject
  6. cue — a signal
  7. stock — shares
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. cue — a hint
  10. toast — the most admired
  11. tear — from crying
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. cue — for pool
  15. toast — bread
  16. wake — a trail
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. season — in sport
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. mine — for digging
  22. stock — goods
  23. field — farmland
  24. season — of the year

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