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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.

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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. suit — clothes
  3. key — the most important part
  4. march — music
  5. suit — to fit
  6. pop — to visit
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. hand — in cards
  10. wound — an injury
  11. hand — help
  12. key — for a lock
  13. march — the month
  14. key — in music
  15. pop — music
  16. row — to paddle
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. march — the month
  19. ground — crushed
  20. wound — an injury
  21. row — a line
  22. suit — in cards
  23. ground — the earth
  24. ground — a position

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