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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 · degree · present · hide · lean · stand · coach · net

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. hand — help
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. lean — thin
  6. net — in sport
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. degree — temperature
  9. present — a gift
  10. lean — to bend
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. present — there
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. net — for catching
  17. hand — in cards
  18. stand — for spectators
  19. net — after costs
  20. present — the time now
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. degree — an amount
  23. stand — to bear
  24. degree — from a university

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