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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. game — wild animals
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. stand — to bear
  5. suit — in cards
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. stem — to come from
  9. lean — to bend
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. lean — thin
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. game — a match
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. suit — clothes
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — to rip
  22. tear — from crying
  23. cold — not warm
  24. suit — to fit

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