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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: cap · degree · roll · pitcher · mug · lie · stand · spring

  1. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. spring — of water
  3. degree — from a university
  4. roll — a cake
  5. stand — to bear
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. mug — to rob
  8. degree — an amount
  9. degree — temperature
  10. lie — to recline
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. cap — a lid
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. spring — a coil
  17. cap — a hat
  18. mug — a cup
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. spring — the season
  21. roll — a list
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. cap — of ice
  24. mug — a face

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