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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: rest · pit · pass · bat · wound · field · bore · key

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. bore — to tire
  4. rest — a break
  5. key — in music
  6. field — a subject
  7. wound — an injury
  8. field — for sport
  9. rest — what's left
  10. wound — an injury
  11. pit — in a race
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. pass — a permit
  14. key — for a lock
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. field — farmland
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bore — to drill
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. bat — the animal
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. pit — a hole
  24. rest — what's left

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