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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 116 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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. rush — hurry
  6. net — for catching
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. key — for a lock
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. key — in music
  11. cold — an illness
  12. cold — not warm
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. net — after costs
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. net — in sport
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. rush — a thrill

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