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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.

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: cold · net · land · foot · wound · staff · stand · capital

  1. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. capital — a city
  3. capital — money
  4. stand — for spectators
  5. land — a country
  6. staff — a stick
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. net — after costs
  9. stand — to bear
  10. staff — employees
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. net — for catching
  13. cold — not warm
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. net — in sport
  16. cold — an illness
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. staff — employees
  20. land — to come down
  21. wound — an injury
  22. land — ground
  23. foot — a measure
  24. wound — an injury

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