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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. spring — of water
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. tear — from crying
  6. key — for a lock
  7. march — the month
  8. key — in music
  9. key — the most important part
  10. spring — the season
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. vault — a safe
  13. tear — to rip
  14. drill — army training
  15. march — music
  16. tear — from crying
  17. drill — the tool
  18. drill — a practice
  19. march — the month
  20. bulb — for light
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. bulb — for light
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. spring — a coil

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