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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. key — for a lock
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. mouse — for a computer
  5. field — a subject
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. ball — a great time
  9. field — farmland
  10. field — for sport
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. ball — a dance
  13. net — for catching
  14. key — in music
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. cold — an illness
  18. net — after costs
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. lie — to recline
  21. net — in sport
  22. key — the most important part
  23. cold — not warm
  24. lie — an untruth

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