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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 120 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: foot · pitcher · pop · tube · wound · track · can · key

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. track — to keep track
  4. key — for a lock
  5. key — the most important part
  6. can — a tin
  7. pop — music
  8. tube — the underground
  9. wound — an injury
  10. pop — to visit
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. track — a path
  13. pop — soda
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. track — a song
  17. foot — a measure
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. can — a tin
  20. key — in music
  21. tube — a container
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. pitcher — a jug

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