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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 116 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: racket · wind · hide · stand · present · cold

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. I can't ________________ this cold.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. present — the time now
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. cold — not warm
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wind — moving air
  12. stand — to bear
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. wind — moving air
  16. cold — an illness
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. present — there

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