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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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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: arm · band · rest · cabinet · cold · racket · hide · season

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. rest — a break
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. cold — not warm
  5. rest — what's left
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. band — a ring
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. season — in sport
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. band — a music group
  20. season — of the year
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. rest — what's left
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. arm — a part of something

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