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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.

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: spell · board · row · bulb · wind · cold · season · last

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. board — a committee
  3. cold — an illness
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. spell — magic
  9. row — a line
  10. last — to go on
  11. board — to get on
  12. bulb — for light
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. wind — moving air
  15. season — of the year
  16. wind — moving air
  17. cold — not warm
  18. spell — a short time
  19. row — to paddle
  20. spell — letters
  21. last — finally
  22. bulb — for light
  23. season — in sport
  24. last — final

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