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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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Word bank
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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 · tear · leaves · present · club · cold

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. present — there
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. tear — to rip
  8. cold — not warm
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. present — a gift
  11. tear — from crying
  12. cold — an illness
  13. present — the time now
  14. club — a group
  15. tear — from crying
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. club — for dancing
  18. stand — to bear

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