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

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. mate — to breed
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. mate — a partner
  7. swing — to play on
  8. branch — a division
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. cell — in biology
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. cell — a phone
  14. cold — not warm
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. swing — music
  18. mate — a friend
  19. swing — in golf
  20. cold — an illness
  21. sharp — clever
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. calf — of the leg

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