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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: chest · row · game · pitch · key · jam · saw · drill

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. chest — of your body
  5. key — for a lock
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. chest — a box
  8. row — a line
  9. key — the most important part
  10. drill — the tool
  11. key — in music
  12. game — a match
  13. pitch — completely
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. drill — army training
  18. game — wild animals
  19. saw — the tool
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. row — to paddle
  22. chest — of your body
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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