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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  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. key — for a lock
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. row — a line
  4. can — to be able to
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. pitch — completely
  9. pound — a weight
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. last — final
  12. season — of the year
  13. last — to go on
  14. row — to paddle
  15. last — finally
  16. can — a tin
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. key — in music
  20. season — in sport
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. can — a tin
  23. pound — for dogs
  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