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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: last · staff · racket · pitch · mate · key · wind · pound

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  3. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. pound — a weight
  3. pitch — a sales talk
  4. mate — to breed
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. key — in music
  9. pitch — completely
  10. staff — employees
  11. mate — a friend
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. last — final
  14. staff — a stick
  15. last — finally
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. key — the most important part
  18. key — for a lock
  19. wind — moving air
  20. mate — a partner
  21. wind — moving air
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. staff — employees
  24. last — to go on

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