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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 116 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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. last — finally
  3. wind — moving air
  4. last — final
  5. pitch — completely
  6. key — for a lock
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. face — to confront
  10. spring — of water
  11. key — in music
  12. spring — a coil
  13. face — to point toward
  14. last — to go on
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. face — part of the head
  17. wind — moving air
  18. drill — the tool
  19. drill — a practice
  20. pitch — a sales talk
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. spring — the season
  23. drill — army training
  24. key — the most important part

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