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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: roll · content · cold · leaves · season · bat · suit · stem

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. season — of the year
  5. roll — a cake
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. suit — in cards
  9. suit — to fit
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. cold — not warm
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. season — in sport
  15. roll — a list
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. stem — to come from
  18. content — happy
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. suit — clothes
  22. content — the amount
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. bat — the animal

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