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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 120 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
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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: key · band · scale · cold · rash · bulb · face · bay

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. band — a ring
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. key — for a lock
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. key — the most important part
  7. scale — in music
  8. key — in music
  9. face — part of the head
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. bulb — for light
  12. face — to point toward
  13. face — to confront
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. scale — size or range
  16. band — a music group
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. rash — a series
  21. rash — hasty
  22. cold — an illness
  23. bulb — for light
  24. bulb — of a plant

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