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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: content · staff · fall · stand · kid · board · date · band

  1. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. staff — employees
  3. content — happy
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. stand — on your feet
  6. band — a ring
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. fall — to drop
  11. kid — to tease
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. fall — to drop
  14. band — a music group
  15. board — a committee
  16. staff — employees
  17. kid — child
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. content — the amount
  20. staff — a stick
  21. stand — to bear
  22. board — to get on
  23. date — the fruit
  24. fall — the season

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