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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: cold · board · court · chest · wave · firm · stand · mug

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  19. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. chest — a box
  3. mug — to rob
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. court — for sport
  6. stand — to bear
  7. firm — a company
  8. chest — of your body
  9. board — a committee
  10. cold — not warm
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. firm — steady
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. chest — of your body
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. firm — decided
  19. wave — a sudden rise
  20. mug — a face
  21. board — to get on
  22. court — of a king
  23. mug — a cup
  24. court — of law

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