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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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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'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. fall — to drop
  3. wound — an injury
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. cold — an illness
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. wound — an injury
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. stem — to come from
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. fall — the season
  16. board — to get on
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. season — of the year
  20. season — in sport
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. fall — to drop

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