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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.

Make a worksheet

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: wind · court · cold · object · spring · leaves · safe · march

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. court — of law
  3. spring — a coil
  4. spring — of water
  5. court — for sport
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. object — an aim
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. cold — an illness
  11. court — of a king
  12. spring — the season
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. wind — moving air
  15. object — to protest
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. march — music
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. object — a thing
  22. march — the month
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. march — the month

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