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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: coach · can · stand · present · lean · shower · rock · cold

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. can — a tin
  4. cold — an illness
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. present — the time now
  7. rock — music
  8. lean — thin
  9. present — a gift
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. rock — a stone
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. shower — rain
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. shower — to wash
  18. can — a tin
  19. present — there
  20. cold — not warm
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. can — to be able to
  23. stand — to bear
  24. stand — for spectators

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