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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 120 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 · stand · pound · club · saw · leaves · cold · bore

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. bore — gave birth
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. cold — not warm
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. club — for dancing
  8. saw — the tool
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. chip — to eat
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. pound — a weight
  14. stand — to bear
  15. cold — an illness
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. saw — the tool
  19. bore — to tire
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. club — a group
  23. chip — for betting
  24. bore — to drill

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