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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: cabinet · pop · can · straw · spring · cold · branch · cap

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. pop — to visit
  4. pop — soda
  5. cap — of ice
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. spring — the season
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. can — a tin
  13. pop — music
  14. cap — a hat
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. cold — an illness
  17. can — a tin
  18. cap — a lid
  19. spring — of water
  20. can — to be able to
  21. cold — not warm
  22. spring — a coil
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. branch — of a bank

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