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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. hand — in cards
  5. mate — a partner
  6. season — in sport
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. bank — of a river
  9. hand — help
  10. mate — a friend
  11. shower — to wash
  12. cold — not warm
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. bank — for money
  16. season — of the year
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. rush — hurry
  20. bank — for money
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. shower — rain
  24. mate — to breed

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