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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: march · cabinet · leaves · plane · cold · cue · chip · band

  1. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. march — the month
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. plane — a tool
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. cold — not warm
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. cue — a signal
  14. band — a music group
  15. march — music
  16. cue — for pool
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. band — a ring
  19. chip — to eat
  20. march — the month
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. chip — for betting
  23. cold — an illness
  24. chip — in a computer

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