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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: ball · leaves · deal · snap · stand · kick · cold · present

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. snap — to speak sharply
  4. present — the time now
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. cold — not warm
  7. ball — a dance
  8. deal — to handle
  9. cold — an illness
  10. present — a gift
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. kick — in football
  15. present — there
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. stand — to bear
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. snap — to click
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. stand — for spectators

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