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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: row · cold · clip · patient · squash · ball · leaves · bank

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. ball — a great time
  5. clip — to cut
  6. row — a line
  7. clip — for paper
  8. bank — of a river
  9. bank — for money
  10. squash — the sport
  11. row — to paddle
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. bank — for money
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. squash — to crush
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — not warm
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. ball — a dance
  24. ball — a round shape

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