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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 ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. lie — to recline
  5. snap — to click
  6. last — finally
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. last — to go on
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. chair — a leader
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. net — for catching
  14. net — in sport
  15. net — after costs
  16. spell — a short time
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. spell — magic
  19. last — final
  20. spell — letters
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. wound — an injury

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