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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 · bowl · nail · wound · staff · present · cold · date

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. present — a gift
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. staff — employees
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. wound — an injury
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. wound — an injury
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. present — there
  13. staff — employees
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. cold — not warm
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. date — the fruit
  19. staff — a stick
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. stand — to bear
  24. present — the time now

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