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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: patient · stand · fall · chair · mark · tear

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. fall — to drop
  3. chair — a leader
  4. mark — a grade
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. fall — to drop
  7. tear — from crying
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. fall — the season
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. mark — a trace
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. stand — to bear
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. tear — from crying
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. stand — for spectators

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