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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. sharp — clever
  3. field — a subject
  4. ground — crushed
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. ground — the earth
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. track — a path
  9. spring — of water
  10. spring — a coil
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. track — a song
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. bore — to drill
  15. key — in music
  16. field — for sport
  17. track — to keep track
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. fork — in a road
  20. bore — to tire
  21. ground — a position
  22. field — farmland
  23. key — for a lock
  24. spring — the season

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