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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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 · cold · bat · lash · mate · board · hand · stock

  1. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. board — to get on
  2. cold — an illness
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. mate — to breed
  5. stand — to bear
  6. hand — help
  7. hand — in cards
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. mate — a partner
  13. stock — goods
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. stock — shares
  16. mate — a friend
  17. board — a committee
  18. cold — not warm
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. bat — the animal
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. bat — for baseball

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