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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: field · face · mine · key · can · pitcher · object · cell

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. key — the most important part
  3. can — a tin
  4. object — to protest
  5. can — to be able to
  6. object — a thing
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. key — for a lock
  9. field — farmland
  10. cell — in biology
  11. field — a subject
  12. cell — a phone
  13. face — part of the head
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. mine — for digging
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. field — for sport
  19. face — to confront
  20. can — a tin
  21. face — to point toward
  22. object — an aim
  23. key — in music
  24. mine — belonging to me

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