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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: key · wax · roll · race · wound · toast · spring · bear

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. wound — an injury
  3. key — the most important part
  4. toast — bread
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. spring — a coil
  7. bear — the animal
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. bear — the animal
  11. wax — to grow
  12. spring — of water
  13. key — for a lock
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. race — humankind
  16. race — a contest
  17. roll — a list
  18. key — in music
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. race — the arms race
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. spring — the season
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. wound — an injury

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