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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. chair — a professorship
  7. cold — an illness
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. cold — not warm
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. chair — a leader
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. branch — a division
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. fall — the season
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. fall — to drop
  24. stand — to bear

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