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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: deal · fall · wake · cold · stem · mine · pitcher · bowl

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. cold — not warm
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. wake — a trail
  10. deal — to handle
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. fall — to drop
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. bowl — to roll
  17. stem — to come from
  18. fall — the season
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. mine — for digging
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. cold — an illness

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