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

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. suit — clothes
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. club — for golf
  5. club — for dancing
  6. ground — crushed
  7. key — the most important part
  8. club — a group
  9. chip — to eat
  10. key — in music
  11. key — for a lock
  12. date — the fruit
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. ground — a position
  16. suit — in cards
  17. suit — to fit
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. chip — for betting
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. cold — an illness
  24. ground — the earth

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