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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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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: chip · deal · plane · ground · stand · lash · wound · cold

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. ground — a position
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. deal — to handle
  8. cold — not warm
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. chip — for betting
  11. stand — to bear
  12. wound — an injury
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. ground — the earth
  17. ground — crushed
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. chip — to eat
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. plane — a tool
  23. chip — in a computer
  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