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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: stand · hand · root · cold · object · pit · foot · clip

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. stand — to bear
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. clip — for paper
  7. clip — to cut
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. root — of a plant
  10. hand — in cards
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. root — the cause
  13. object — an aim
  14. cold — not warm
  15. object — a thing
  16. hand — help
  17. root — of a word
  18. cold — an illness
  19. object — to protest
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. clip — a video
  22. pit — in a race
  23. foot — a measure
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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