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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: key · fall · fan · mine · pit · drill · object · court

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. pit — a hole
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. object — to protest
  5. court — of law
  6. key — for a lock
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. key — the most important part
  10. object — a thing
  11. fall — to drop
  12. drill — the tool
  13. drill — a practice
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. pit — in a race
  16. court — of a king
  17. object — an aim
  18. court — for sport
  19. fall — the season
  20. fall — to drop
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. key — in music
  24. drill — army training

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