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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. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. kid — to tease
  3. key — the most important part
  4. key — for a lock
  5. tear — from crying
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. swing — in golf
  8. tear — to rip
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. chest — of your body
  11. kid — child
  12. race — a contest
  13. race — the arms race
  14. race — humankind
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. swing — to play on
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. chest — of your body
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. swing — music
  21. key — in music
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. tear — from crying
  24. chest — a box

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