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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: file · staff · key · lie · cell · shower · pitcher · ball

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. lie — to recline
  4. staff — a stick
  5. ball — a dance
  6. file — a tool
  7. staff — employees
  8. key — for a lock
  9. staff — employees
  10. cell — in biology
  11. file — a document
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. ball — a great time
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. shower — to wash
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. key — the most important part
  21. cell — a phone
  22. file — a line of people
  23. key — in music
  24. shower — rain

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