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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: key · season · wind · pitcher · dip · file

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. season — of the year
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. file — a line of people
  6. file — a tool
  7. key — in music
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. key — for a lock
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. wind — moving air
  12. dip — to sink
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. season — in sport
  15. file — a document
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. wind — moving air

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