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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.

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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. last — finally
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. spring — a coil
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. pop — music
  9. spring — the season
  10. key — the most important part
  11. kick — in football
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. key — for a lock
  14. spring — of water
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. pop — soda
  17. key — in music
  18. pitch — completely
  19. last — to go on
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. pop — to visit
  23. mine — for digging
  24. leaves — of a tree

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