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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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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 · cell · pit · ruler · content · cold

  1. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — in a race
  2. key — the most important part
  3. key — for a lock
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. cell — in biology
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. content — happy
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. content — the amount
  12. cold — not warm
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. key — in music
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. cold — an illness
  17. cell — a phone
  18. pit — a hole

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