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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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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. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. content — the amount
  4. cold — not warm
  5. key — in music
  6. clip — to cut
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. branch — a division
  10. key — for a lock
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cap — of ice
  16. cap — a lid
  17. key — the most important part
  18. clip — a video
  19. clip — for paper
  20. content — happy
  21. cap — a hat
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. branch — of a bank

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