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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.

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: cold · last · band · wave · court · spring · toast · fan

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. cold — not warm
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. spring — of water
  6. court — of a king
  7. cold — an illness
  8. court — of law
  9. toast — bread
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. last — to go on
  12. band — a ring
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. toast — a drink to someone
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. last — finally
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. last — final
  20. court — for sport
  21. band — a music group
  22. spring — the season
  23. spring — a coil
  24. fan — a supporter

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