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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: fan · pass · wound · tear · hide · hand · rest · stand

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. pass — a permit
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. stand — to bear
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. rest — what's left
  10. tear — from crying
  11. rest — what's left
  12. fan — to cool the air
  13. tear — to rip
  14. hand — help
  15. wound — an injury
  16. tear — from crying
  17. wound — an injury
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. hand — in cards
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. hand — part of the body

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