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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. wind — moving air
  3. key — for a lock
  4. wind — moving air
  5. key — the most important part
  6. last — to go on
  7. spell — a short time
  8. march — the month
  9. race — humankind
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. march — the month
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. last — finally
  15. key — in music
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. march — music
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. race — a contest
  20. race — the arms race
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. last — final
  24. spell — letters

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