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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. spring — the season
  3. key — for a lock
  4. present — the time now
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. staff — employees
  7. present — a gift
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. key — the most important part
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. spring — a coil
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. spring — of water
  16. present — there
  17. staff — a stick
  18. staff — employees

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