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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.

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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: trunk · wake · leaves · wind · clip · march · lie · cabinet

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. lie — to recline
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. march — the month
  5. clip — to cut
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. wind — moving air
  9. clip — for paper
  10. march — music
  11. march — the month
  12. wind — moving air
  13. clip — a video
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. wake — a trail
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. leaves — lets stay

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