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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.

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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: object · season · cold · key · bound · rest · saw · pitch

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. key — the most important part
  4. season — of the year
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. key — for a lock
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. bound — obliged
  9. object — to protest
  10. cold — an illness
  11. object — an aim
  12. bound — tied together
  13. saw — the tool
  14. saw — the tool
  15. rest — what's left
  16. rest — a break
  17. object — a thing
  18. rest — what's left
  19. cold — not warm
  20. key — in music
  21. pitch — completely
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. bound — certain
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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