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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: lie · leaves · game · chest · cold · ball · bank · capital

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. game — a match
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. game — wild animals
  6. capital — money
  7. chest — of your body
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. chest — a box
  10. bank — of a river
  11. ball — a dance
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. capital — a city
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. chest — of your body
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. bank — for money
  19. lie — to recline
  20. cold — an illness
  21. ball — a great time
  22. cold — not warm
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. bank — for money

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