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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: pass · mine · chest · bay · face · court · wind · key

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. chest — of your body
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. chest — a box
  5. chest — of your body
  6. mine — for digging
  7. court — for sport
  8. key — for a lock
  9. court — of law
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. wind — moving air
  12. pass — a permit
  13. wind — moving air
  14. face — to point toward
  15. key — the most important part
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. court — of a king
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. face — part of the head
  20. bay — a part of the sea
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. face — to confront
  23. key — in music
  24. pass — to spend time

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