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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: lean · sharp · tear · ball · bound · stand · foot · cold

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. tear — from crying
  3. sharp — clever
  4. cold — an illness
  5. lean — thin
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. foot — a measure
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. lean — to bend
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. ball — a great time
  12. bound — certain
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. bound — obliged
  15. bound — tied together
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. tear — to rip
  18. tear — from crying
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. cold — not warm
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. ball — a dance
  24. foot — part of the body

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