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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 120 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: key · bound · clip · fork · pitcher · cell · face · wound

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. key — for a lock
  4. fork — in a road
  5. wound — an injury
  6. key — the most important part
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. bound — certain
  11. clip — to cut
  12. clip — for paper
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. bound — obliged
  16. cell — a phone
  17. key — in music
  18. wound — an injury
  19. face — part of the head
  20. face — to point toward
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. clip — a video
  23. face — to confront
  24. cell — in biology

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