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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: drill · stand · cold · safe · current · cap · court · branch

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. cap — of ice
  3. court — of a king
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. branch — a division
  7. cold — an illness
  8. court — for sport
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. drill — the tool
  11. stand — to bear
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. court — of law
  14. drill — army training
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. cold — not warm
  17. current — of water
  18. drill — a practice
  19. cap — a hat
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. current — happening now
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. current — electric

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