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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. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. court — of law
  4. bound — obliged
  5. court — of a king
  6. present — there
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. spring — a coil
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. fall — to drop
  12. court — for sport
  13. present — a gift
  14. bound — certain
  15. fall — to drop
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. present — the time now
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. spring — the season
  20. bound — tied together
  21. chair — a leader
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. fall — the season
  24. spring — of water

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