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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 120 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: drill · straw · degree · cue · land · season · fall · stand

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. I can't ________________ this cold.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. season — of the year
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. degree — temperature
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. cue — for pool
  9. fall — the season
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. cue — a signal
  12. drill — a practice
  13. season — in sport
  14. drill — the tool
  15. stand — to bear
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. degree — an amount
  18. land — to come down
  19. fall — to drop
  20. degree — from a university
  21. land — ground
  22. drill — army training
  23. land — a country
  24. cue — a hint

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