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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.

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: leaves · cold · game · stand · spring · cue · foot · wound

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. wound — an injury
  4. foot — a measure
  5. game — wild animals
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. cue — a signal
  8. game — a match
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. cue — for pool
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. cold — an illness
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. spring — the season
  17. stand — to bear
  18. cold — not warm
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. cue — a hint
  22. spring — of water
  23. spring — a coil
  24. stand — on your feet

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