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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: scale · wind · stand · mouse · cap · wound · cold · calf

  1. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. calf — of the leg
  3. cold — an illness
  4. cap — a hat
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. cap — a lid
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — an injury
  10. stand — to bear
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. cold — not warm
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. wind — moving air
  21. cap — of ice
  22. scale — in music
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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