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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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. mark — a grade
  4. degree — temperature
  5. band — a rubber band
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. cue — a signal
  8. degree — an amount
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. band — a ring
  13. cap — a lid
  14. band — a music group
  15. cap — a hat
  16. cue — for pool
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. mark — a trace
  20. cue — a hint
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. degree — from a university
  24. cap — of ice

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