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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: pit · degree · pass · wave · key · wind · straw · wound

  1. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — a sudden rise
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wound — an injury
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. key — the most important part
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. key — in music
  9. degree — from a university
  10. degree — an amount
  11. pass — a permit
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. degree — temperature
  17. pit — a hole
  18. pit — in a race
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. wind — moving air
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. wound — an injury
  23. key — for a lock
  24. wave — with your hand

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