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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. hand — help
  3. net — after costs
  4. hand — in cards
  5. wake — a trail
  6. file — a document
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. ball — a dance
  11. key — in music
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. net — for catching
  15. key — the most important part
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. ball — a great time
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. net — in sport
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. file — a line of people
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. file — a tool

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