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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
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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: key · stand · hand · rule · cold · pitcher · deal · branch

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. key — for a lock
  5. hand — in cards
  6. stand — to bear
  7. key — in music
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. cold — an illness
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. deal — to handle
  12. rule — a law
  13. branch — a division
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. key — the most important part
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. rule — government
  20. cold — not warm
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. branch — of a bank

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