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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: ball · club · bear · leaves · cold · cabinet · track · march

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. club — for golf
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. track — to keep track
  6. cold — not warm
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. bear — the animal
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. club — for dancing
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. cold — an illness
  13. ball — a dance
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. march — the month
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. club — a group
  19. march — the month
  20. bear — the animal
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. track — a path
  23. march — music
  24. ball — a great time

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