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

Word bank: drill · wind · race · key · cabinet · chest

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. race — humankind
  4. chest — of your body
  5. wind — moving air
  6. key — for a lock
  7. key — in music
  8. drill — the tool
  9. drill — a practice
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. chest — of your body
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. race — a contest
  15. drill — army training
  16. key — the most important part
  17. race — the arms race
  18. chest — a box

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