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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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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 · wind · field · safe · cue · mark · drill · ground

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. key — the most important part
  3. wind — moving air
  4. mark — a trace
  5. cue — a signal
  6. drill — a practice
  7. cue — for pool
  8. drill — the tool
  9. field — farmland
  10. ground — crushed
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. key — for a lock
  13. cue — a hint
  14. wind — moving air
  15. ground — a position
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. mark — a grade
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. key — in music
  21. field — a subject
  22. field — for sport
  23. drill — army training
  24. ground — the earth

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