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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: stock · rush · last · board · file · mate · face · current

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. current — electric
  3. last — to go on
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. file — a tool
  7. mate — to breed
  8. rush — hurry
  9. face — to point toward
  10. last — finally
  11. file — a document
  12. mate — a friend
  13. current — happening now
  14. face — to confront
  15. file — a line of people
  16. stock — shares
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. stock — goods
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. board — a committee
  21. mate — a partner
  22. face — part of the head
  23. current — of water
  24. board — to get on

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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