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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. key — in music
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. wind — moving air
  5. season — of the year
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. bound — obliged
  9. last — to go on
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. bound — certain
  12. charge — in control
  13. last — final
  14. chest — of your body
  15. last — finally
  16. key — the most important part
  17. season — in sport
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. chest — of your body
  20. charge — a price
  21. wind — moving air
  22. charge — electricity
  23. bound — tied together
  24. chest — a box

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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