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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 116 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: fall · cold · lash · net · lean · last · board · patient

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. last — to go on
  3. board — a committee
  4. fall — the season
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. net — after costs
  8. fall — to drop
  9. net — in sport
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. last — finally
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. fall — to drop
  15. cold — not warm
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. net — for catching
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. board — to get on
  20. lean — thin
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. cold — an illness
  24. last — final

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