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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 116 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: bowl · lash · spell · cabinet · tube · key · kick · cold

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. cold — not warm
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. spell — a short time
  7. key — for a lock
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. tube — the underground
  15. tube — a container
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. spell — letters
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. spell — magic
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. kick — in football
  23. key — in music
  24. cold — an illness

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