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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. kid — to tease
  3. key — in music
  4. drill — a practice
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. board — a committee
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. squash — to crush
  10. stock — shares
  11. key — the most important part
  12. last — to go on
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. drill — the tool
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. drill — army training
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. pound — a weight
  19. board — to get on
  20. last — finally
  21. stock — goods
  22. kid — child
  23. squash — the sport
  24. last — final

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