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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. stand — to bear
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — the season
  5. object — an aim
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. land — ground
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. pitch — completely
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. object — a thing
  15. object — to protest
  16. band — a music group
  17. kid — child
  18. stem — to come from
  19. land — to come down
  20. fall — to drop
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. kid — to tease
  24. band — a ring

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