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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 120 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: wind · ball · mate · bay · cell · cold · leaves · swing

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. mate — to breed
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. mate — a partner
  6. swing — in golf
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. cell — a phone
  12. swing — music
  13. ball — a dance
  14. wind — moving air
  15. cell — in biology
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. leaves — lets stay
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. cold — an illness
  20. mate — a friend
  21. swing — to play on
  22. ball — a great time
  23. cold — not warm
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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