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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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: land · tube · season · face · cold · cue · clip · temple

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. When was this ________________ built?
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. face — part of the head
  3. cue — a signal
  4. cue — for pool
  5. season — in sport
  6. face — to point toward
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. tube — the underground
  9. clip — to cut
  10. cold — an illness
  11. land — to come down
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. face — to confront
  14. clip — for paper
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. land — a country
  17. cue — a hint
  18. clip — a video
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. tube — a container
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. land — ground
  24. season — of the year

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