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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 · cold · fall · patient · cell · fork

  1. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — a sick person
  2. fall — to drop
  3. cell — a phone
  4. cold — not warm
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. fork — in a road
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. cold — an illness
  10. fall — the season
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. stand — to bear
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. fall — to drop
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. cell — in biology
  18. patient — calm and waiting

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