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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: ground · wax · cold · row · key · pitch · pound · staff

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. row — to paddle
  3. ground — a position
  4. staff — a stick
  5. cold — not warm
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. cold — an illness
  8. ground — crushed
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. ground — the earth
  11. staff — employees
  12. staff — employees
  13. key — in music
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. pitch — completely
  16. row — a line
  17. key — for a lock
  18. wax — to grow
  19. pound — a weight
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. wax — for sculpting
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. key — the most important part

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