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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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. land — a country
  4. chest — of your body
  5. land — ground
  6. current — happening now
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. chest — a box
  9. court — of law
  10. court — of a king
  11. chest — of your body
  12. track — a song
  13. cold — not warm
  14. current — electric
  15. stand — to bear
  16. land — to come down
  17. court — for sport
  18. cold — an illness
  19. current — of water
  20. track — a path
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. track — to keep track

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