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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: cold · stick · fall · ball · key · pound · kick · track

  1. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. track — to keep track
  5. fall — the season
  6. key — in music
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. cold — an illness
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. key — the most important part
  11. ball — a dance
  12. cold — not warm
  13. track — a song
  14. track — a path
  15. key — for a lock
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. kick — in football
  20. fall — to drop
  21. fall — to drop
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. ball — a great time
  24. pound — a weight

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