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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 120 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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. chest — a box
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. current — happening now
  5. ground — a position
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. key — for a lock
  9. current — of water
  10. ground — crushed
  11. key — the most important part
  12. scale — size or range
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rest — what's left
  15. chest — of your body
  16. rest — a break
  17. scale — in music
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. current — electric
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. ground — the earth
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. chest — of your body
  24. key — in music

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