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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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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 · hide · roll · pitcher · rest · perch · band · key

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. rest — a break
  4. roll — a list
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. key — the most important part
  7. rest — what's left
  8. chest — of your body
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. roll — a cake
  11. rest — what's left
  12. chest — of your body
  13. band — a music group
  14. chest — a box
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. key — in music
  20. perch — the fish
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. band — a ring
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. band — a rubber band

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