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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.

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: track · key · bear · chest · ball · cold · cabinet · coach

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. key — in music
  3. chest — of your body
  4. key — the most important part
  5. chest — a box
  6. ball — a great time
  7. cold — not warm
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. cold — an illness
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. track — a path
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. ball — a dance
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. track — to keep track
  17. chest — of your body
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. bear — the animal
  23. track — a song
  24. bear — the animal

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