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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. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — to come from
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. club — for dancing
  4. cold — an illness
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. stand — to bear
  9. club — a group
  10. tear — from crying
  11. club — for golf
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. staff — employees
  14. mine — for digging
  15. tear — from crying
  16. band — a music group
  17. staff — a stick
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. band — a ring
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. staff — employees
  22. tear — to rip
  23. cold — not warm
  24. cold — the Cold War

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