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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: roll · fall · cold · bowl · patient · staff · foot · straw

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. staff — employees
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. fall — the season
  10. staff — a stick
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. fall — to drop
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. cold — not warm
  15. staff — employees
  16. roll — a cake
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. foot — a measure
  21. roll — a list
  22. cold — an illness
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. fall — to drop

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