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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: last · cold · ball · clip · present · bound · stand · safe

  1. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. cold — not warm
  4. ball — a dance
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. last — to go on
  8. present — there
  9. bound — certain
  10. cold — an illness
  11. bound — obliged
  12. present — the time now
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. last — final
  15. clip — to cut
  16. last — finally
  17. stand — to bear
  18. present — a gift
  19. clip — a video
  20. clip — for paper
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. ball — a great time
  24. bound — tied together

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