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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 120 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: deal · cold · current · game · wind · wound · ruler · stand

  1. That was a fun ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  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. game — a match
  2. wound — an injury
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. wound — an injury
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. cold — an illness
  8. wind — moving air
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. game — wild animals
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. stand — to bear
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. cold — not warm
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. deal — to handle
  19. current — happening now
  20. current — of water
  21. current — electric
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. wind — moving air
  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