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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. wax — for sculpting
  2. key — in music
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. net — in sport
  5. key — the most important part
  6. spell — a short time
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. spell — magic
  11. spell — letters
  12. bound — obliged
  13. bound — certain
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. net — for catching
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. bound — tied together
  19. wax — to grow
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. key — for a lock
  24. net — after costs

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