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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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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 · wind · face · pound · mate · race · court · mug

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. mug — to rob
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. court — for sport
  5. key — for a lock
  6. mate — a friend
  7. key — in music
  8. face — part of the head
  9. wind — moving air
  10. face — to point toward
  11. mate — to breed
  12. wind — moving air
  13. mug — a cup
  14. race — a contest
  15. mug — a face
  16. race — the arms race
  17. key — the most important part
  18. pound — a weight
  19. face — to confront
  20. race — humankind
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. mate — a partner
  23. court — of a king
  24. court — of law

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