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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.

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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. cold — not warm
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. branch — a division
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. plane — a tool
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. bowl — to roll

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