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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. scale — size or range
  5. band — a ring
  6. chip — for betting
  7. cold — an illness
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. stand — to bear
  13. chip — to eat
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. fall — the season
  17. scale — in music
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. cold — not warm
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. fall — to drop
  23. band — a music group
  24. patient — a sick person

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