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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 116 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: coach · tear · lie · wound · stand · cold · fine · bat

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. tear — from crying
  4. wound — an injury
  5. tear — from crying
  6. fine — high quality
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. bat — the animal
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. cold — an illness
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. tear — to rip
  18. fine — all right
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. stand — to bear
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. cold — not warm
  24. lie — to recline

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