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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 ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. mate — a partner
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. cold — an illness
  6. stem — to come from
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. cold — not warm
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. mate — to breed
  13. clip — to cut
  14. mate — a friend
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. date — the fruit
  17. content — the amount
  18. clip — a video
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. wax — to grow
  23. clip — for paper
  24. content — happy

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