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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: racket · wind · cold · wound · cabinet · club · cell · key

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. wind — moving air
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. key — for a lock
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. cold — an illness
  10. wind — moving air
  11. cold — not warm
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. club — for golf
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. wound — an injury
  16. cell — a phone
  17. key — in music
  18. club — a group
  19. wound — an injury
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. key — the most important part
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cell — in biology
  24. club — for dancing

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