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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. cold — not warm
  3. mate — a friend
  4. cold — an illness
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. mate — a partner
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. fall — the season
  10. row — a line
  11. row — to paddle
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. fall — to drop
  15. vault — a safe
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. fall — to drop
  21. stem — to come from
  22. mate — to breed
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. stem — of a plant

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