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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: cold · scale · deal · leaves · present · fall · current · bear

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. deal — to handle
  3. present — the time now
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. present — a gift
  6. cold — an illness
  7. current — electric
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. current — of water
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fall — the season
  13. scale — in music
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. current — happening now
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. bear — the animal
  20. present — there
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. bear — the animal
  23. fall — to drop
  24. scale — size or range

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