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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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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: race · pass · rule · stick · court · kid · cold · stand

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. kid — child
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. court — for sport
  5. pass — a permit
  6. kid — to tease
  7. rule — a law
  8. stand — to bear
  9. pass — to succeed
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. race — the arms race
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. court — of a king
  15. court — of law
  16. race — a contest
  17. race — humankind
  18. rule — government
  19. rule — to rule out
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. cold — not warm
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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