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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: root · face · band · board · last · stock · trunk · lash

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The ________________ market has crashed.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. face — to point toward
  3. last — final
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. root — of a plant
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. board — to get on
  11. root — the cause
  12. last — to go on
  13. band — a ring
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. face — to confront
  16. root — of a word
  17. stock — shares
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. last — finally
  21. face — part of the head
  22. band — a music group
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. stock — goods

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