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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. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. swing — in golf
  3. net — after costs
  4. key — in music
  5. row — to paddle
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. tear — to rip
  8. swing — to play on
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. tear — from crying
  11. file — a document
  12. swing — music
  13. tear — from crying
  14. file — a line of people
  15. chip — for betting
  16. net — in sport
  17. net — for catching
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. chip — to eat
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. key — the most important part
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. file — a tool
  24. row — a line

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