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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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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: hand · bark · bat · lean · suit · stand · spell · foot

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. When will it ________________ you to start?
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. foot — a measure
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. hand — in cards
  5. spell — magic
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. suit — clothes
  8. spell — a short time
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. lean — thin
  11. lean — to bend
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. bark — to shout
  15. suit — to fit
  16. suit — in cards
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. spell — letters
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. hand — help
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. lean — to rest against

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