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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: spring · cold · staff · pound · cue · mug · key · capital

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. Where did you ________________ them?
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. key — for a lock
  3. capital — a city
  4. cold — an illness
  5. capital — money
  6. mug — a cup
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. key — in music
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. cue — a hint
  11. spring — the season
  12. staff — a stick
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. staff — employees
  16. staff — employees
  17. cue — for pool
  18. spring — of water
  19. cue — a signal
  20. mug — to rob
  21. pound — a weight
  22. key — the most important part
  23. spring — a coil
  24. cold — not warm

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