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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. shower — rain
  3. key — for a lock
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. key — the most important part
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. rash — hasty
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. staff — a stick
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — an injury
  15. bass — low music
  16. rash — a series
  17. shower — to wash
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. key — in music
  21. staff — employees
  22. bass — the fish
  23. perch — the fish
  24. rash — on the skin

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