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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: date · bound · straw · cue · safe · cold · wind · key

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. cue — a hint
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. key — in music
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. bound — tied together
  10. cold — not warm
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. date — the fruit
  14. key — for a lock
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. bound — obliged
  17. wind — moving air
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. cue — for pool
  20. cue — a signal
  21. cold — an illness
  22. wind — moving air
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. bound — certain

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