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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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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: net · kid · cold · toast · wake · ball · trunk · key

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. net — for catching
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. key — for a lock
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. cold — an illness
  7. cold — not warm
  8. toast — bread
  9. kid — child
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. wake — a trail
  13. net — after costs
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. wake — before a funeral
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. key — the most important part
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. toast — a drink to someone
  20. ball — a great time
  21. key — in music
  22. ball — a dance
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. kid — to tease

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