ClueBy
TodayArchiveWord list

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 116 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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
YesNo
↻ New worksheet

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: ruler · mine · land · wound · face · stock · field · mark

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. stock — shares
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. mark — a grade
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. face — part of the head
  10. land — a country
  11. mark — a trace
  12. field — farmland
  13. face — to point toward
  14. stock — goods
  15. face — to confront
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. mine — for digging
  18. field — a subject
  19. land — to come down
  20. wound — an injury
  21. land — ground
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. wound — an injury
  24. field — for sport

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