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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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. key — for a lock
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. swing — to play on
  6. wind — moving air
  7. cold — not warm
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. swing — in golf
  10. key — the most important part
  11. cold — an illness
  12. swing — music
  13. stand — to bear
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. rule — government
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. rule — a law
  18. wind — moving air
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. scale — in music
  22. scale — size or range
  23. key — in music
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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