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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: spring · cold · leaves · court · band · racket · cabinet · cap

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. cold — an illness
  5. court — for sport
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. cold — not warm
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. spring — of water
  11. cap — of ice
  12. court — of a king
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. band — a ring
  15. cap — a lid
  16. cap — a hat
  17. court — of law
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. band — a music group
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. spring — a coil
  24. racket — for tennis

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