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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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. rest — what's left
  4. key — in music
  5. field — a subject
  6. kid — child
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. field — for sport
  9. bore — to tire
  10. kid — to tease
  11. rest — a break
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. field — farmland
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. face — part of the head
  17. stock — goods
  18. face — to confront
  19. key — for a lock
  20. face — to point toward
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. bore — to drill
  23. key — the most important part
  24. stock — shares

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