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

Word bank: cold · ball · bank · perch · leaves · fork · kick · cap

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. cold — not warm
  3. kick — in football
  4. bank — for money
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. bank — of a river
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. bank — for money
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. ball — a dance
  13. fork — in a road
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. cold — an illness
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. cap — a hat
  20. perch — the fish
  21. cap — of ice
  22. ball — a great time
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. cold — the Cold War

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