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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: swing · fall · ground · stand · cell · hand · cap · rash

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. cap — of ice
  3. ground — the earth
  4. rash — a series
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. cell — in biology
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. fall — to drop
  9. stand — to bear
  10. rash — hasty
  11. fall — the season
  12. swing — music
  13. cap — a hat
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. swing — in golf
  16. hand — in cards
  17. fall — to drop
  18. swing — to play on
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. cap — a lid
  22. ground — crushed
  23. cell — a phone
  24. ground — a position

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