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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. chest — of your body
  3. key — for a lock
  4. field — a subject
  5. key — the most important part
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. key — in music
  9. chest — of your body
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. field — farmland
  12. wound — an injury
  13. chest — a box
  14. field — for sport
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. cap — a hat
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. cap — a lid
  22. cap — of ice
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. pitch — completely

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