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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: kick · pound · staff · bowl · key · file

  1. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. key — for a lock
  3. staff — a stick
  4. kick — in football
  5. pound — a weight
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. key — the most important part
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. file — a tool
  13. staff — employees
  14. file — a line of people
  15. key — in music
  16. file — a document
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. pound — to hit hard

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