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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: stand · fine · bowl · staff · roll · fall · cold · capital

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. staff — employees
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. stand — to bear
  6. roll — a list
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. staff — a stick
  9. capital — a city
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. fine — all right
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. cold — an illness
  15. staff — employees
  16. roll — a cake
  17. fine — high quality
  18. capital — money
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. cold — not warm
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fall — to drop
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. fall — the season

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