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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.

Make a worksheet

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: cell · kick · cold · spring · leaves · sharp · lean · season

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. cell — a phone
  3. sharp — clever
  4. season — in sport
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. lean — thin
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. spring — a coil
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. spring — of water
  15. cold — not warm
  16. kick — in football
  17. spring — the season
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. cell — in biology
  21. cold — an illness
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. season — of the year
  24. lean — to bend

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