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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. drill — army training
  3. court — of law
  4. key — in music
  5. drill — the tool
  6. field — farmland
  7. spring — a coil
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. spring — the season
  10. court — of a king
  11. field — for sport
  12. drill — a practice
  13. key — the most important part
  14. deal — to handle
  15. land — to come down
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. land — ground
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. field — a subject
  20. court — for sport
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. land — a country
  23. spring — of water
  24. bowl — a dish

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