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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.

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: cold · plane · rest · staff · season · leaves · perch · nail

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. season — of the year
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. perch — the fish
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. season — in sport
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. rest — what's left
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. rest — what's left
  14. plane — a tool
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. staff — employees
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. staff — a stick
  20. rest — a break
  21. cold — an illness
  22. cold — not warm
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. plane — in geometry

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