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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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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: wind · bowl · saw · file · track · key

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. saw — the tool
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. key — the most important part
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. file — a line of people
  8. saw — the tool
  9. key — in music
  10. track — to keep track
  11. track — a path
  12. wind — moving air
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. file — a tool
  15. track — a song
  16. file — a document
  17. wind — moving air
  18. bowl — a dish

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