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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. stand — to bear
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. mate — to breed
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. wind — moving air
  8. fall — to drop
  9. branch — a division
  10. fall — to drop
  11. mate — a partner
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. shower — rain
  15. land — a country
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. fall — the season
  18. wind — moving air
  19. land — ground
  20. mate — a friend
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. shower — to wash
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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