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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: stock · key · wind · cue · nail · chair · face · pound

  1. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. nail — on a finger
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. key — for a lock
  8. cue — a signal
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. face — to point toward
  12. key — in music
  13. stock — goods
  14. face — to confront
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. wind — moving air
  17. face — part of the head
  18. cue — for pool
  19. key — the most important part
  20. wind — moving air
  21. stock — shares
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. cue — a hint
  24. pound — a weight

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