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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. content — the amount
  4. field — farmland
  5. chip — to eat
  6. chip — for betting
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. bank — for money
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. stand — to bear
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. field — for sport
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. bank — for money
  17. cold — an illness
  18. content — happy
  19. field — a subject
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. cold — not warm
  22. bank — of a river
  23. plane — a tool
  24. stand — on your feet

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