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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 · suit · kid · wind · wake · chair

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. suit — clothes
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. wind — moving air
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. chair — a leader
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. wake — a trail
  14. stand — to bear
  15. suit — to fit
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. kid — child
  18. suit — in cards

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