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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. ball — a great time
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. pop — soda
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. mug — to rob
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. pop — music
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cold — an illness
  14. court — for sport
  15. cell — in biology
  16. mug — a cup
  17. pop — to visit
  18. cold — not warm
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. court — of a king
  21. court — of law
  22. mug — a face
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. ball — a dance

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