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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 116 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.

Make a worksheet

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: bat · wound · bear · straw · stand · nail · leaves · ground

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. ground — crushed
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. bear — the animal
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. ground — a position
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. wound — an injury
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. bat — the animal
  17. wound — an injury
  18. ground — the earth
  19. bear — the animal
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. bat — in an idiom

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