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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: cold · leaves · coach · bass · content · cabinet · lean · clip

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. bass — the fish
  6. cold — an illness
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. lean — thin
  14. clip — for paper
  15. bass — low music
  16. content — happy
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. clip — to cut
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. cold — not warm
  21. lean — to bend
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. content — the amount
  24. content — videos and posts

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