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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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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 · court · pit · pitch · drill · snap · season · wind

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. key — the most important part
  3. pitch — completely
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. season — in sport
  6. drill — a practice
  7. drill — the tool
  8. court — of law
  9. court — for sport
  10. drill — army training
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. pit — in a race
  15. snap — to click
  16. wind — moving air
  17. court — of a king
  18. pit — a hole
  19. season — of the year
  20. key — in music
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. key — for a lock
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. wind — moving air

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