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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 116 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: kick · cold · hide · bass · prune · nail · swing · key

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. cold — not warm
  4. bass — low music
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. key — in music
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. prune — to trim
  12. swing — music
  13. bass — the fish
  14. prune — to trim
  15. cold — an illness
  16. kick — in football
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. swing — to play on
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. key — for a lock
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. swing — in golf

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