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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 116 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: bowl · fan · cabinet · cold · clip · spring · straw · mouse

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. clip — for paper
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. spring — the season
  9. spring — a coil
  10. clip — to cut
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. cold — not warm
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. spring — of water
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. clip — a video
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. cold — an illness
  24. mouse — for 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