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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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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. bark — to shout
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. cold — an illness
  7. firm — steady
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. firm — a company
  10. stand — to bear
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. rock — music
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. firm — decided
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. rock — a stone
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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