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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. stem — to come from
  7. snap — to click
  8. bound — tied together
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. bound — obliged
  11. net — for catching
  12. net — after costs
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. fall — to drop
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. cold — not warm
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. net — in sport
  20. fall — the season
  21. cold — an illness
  22. bound — certain
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. fall — to drop

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