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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. prune — to trim
  5. foot — a measure
  6. cold — not warm
  7. prune — to trim
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. row — to paddle
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. cold — an illness
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. bat — the animal
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. stand — to bear
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. row — a line

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