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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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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: racket · cap · mark · chest · cold · rock · stand · object

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cap — a lid
  4. mark — a grade
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. object — to protest
  7. rock — music
  8. cap — a hat
  9. cold — not warm
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. chest — a box
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. chest — of your body
  14. stand — to bear
  15. object — an aim
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. cap — of ice
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. object — a thing
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. mark — a trace
  23. rock — a stone
  24. mark — to pay attention

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