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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: stand · fall · wind · cabinet · tear · roll

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. tear — from crying
  3. roll — a cake
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. tear — from crying
  8. tear — to rip
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. fall — to drop
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. stand — to bear
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. roll — a list
  15. fall — the season
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. fall — to drop

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