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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: fall · court · cold · hand · stick · cabinet · season · object

  1. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. court — of a king
  3. court — for sport
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. object — to protest
  6. court — of law
  7. fall — the season
  8. cold — not warm
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. object — a thing
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. hand — in cards
  14. hand — help
  15. cold — an illness
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fall — to drop
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. season — in sport
  20. season — of the year
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. object — an aim
  24. cabinet — ministers

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