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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 120 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 had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. cold — an illness
  5. bear — the animal
  6. stand — to bear
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. snap — to click
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. lie — to recline
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. bear — the animal
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. kid — to tease
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. cold — not warm
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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