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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 train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. fall — to drop
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. mine — for digging
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. season — in sport
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. fall — the season
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. branch — a division
  14. club — for golf
  15. degree — temperature
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. season — of the year
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. fall — to drop
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. degree — an amount
  22. degree — from a university
  23. club — a group
  24. club — for dancing

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