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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.

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: scale · rush · cell · key · chest · pit · cold · mug

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. key — for a lock
  3. mug — a cup
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. key — the most important part
  6. scale — in music
  7. mug — to rob
  8. cold — not warm
  9. cell — in biology
  10. pit — a hole
  11. cell — a phone
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. mug — a face
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. scale — size or range
  17. cold — an illness
  18. rush — hurry
  19. chest — a box
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. chest — of your body
  22. pit — in a race
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. key — in music

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