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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 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.

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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: mine · rock · stock · wind · field · chair · staff · land

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. wind — moving air
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. stock — shares
  7. chair — a leader
  8. field — for sport
  9. staff — employees
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. staff — a stick
  12. field — farmland
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. land — ground
  16. land — to come down
  17. rock — music
  18. wind — moving air
  19. stock — goods
  20. mine — for digging
  21. land — a country
  22. rock — a stone
  23. staff — employees
  24. mine — an explosive

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