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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. key — for a lock
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. bear — the animal
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. key — in music
  10. wax — to grow
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. chip — to eat
  19. wound — an injury
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. chip — for betting
  24. bear — the animal

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