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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: mouse · lean · pop · cold · game · leaves · mine · key

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. game — a match
  4. key — the most important part
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. key — in music
  10. mine — for digging
  11. pop — music
  12. lean — thin
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. cold — an illness
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. key — for a lock
  17. lean — to bend
  18. cold — not warm
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. game — wild animals
  21. pop — to visit
  22. pop — soda
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. leaves — to go away

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