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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 · squash · pass · prune · calf · season · cold · chair

  1. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — to succeed
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. cold — not warm
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. stand — to bear
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. pass — a permit
  10. chair — a leader
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. squash — to crush
  14. season — in sport
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. prune — to trim
  19. cold — an illness
  20. season — of the year
  21. prune — to trim
  22. squash — the sport
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. chair — to sit on

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