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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. key — in music
  3. snap — to click
  4. key — the most important part
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. roll — a list
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. degree — temperature
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. degree — an amount
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. roll — a cake
  13. prune — to trim
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. scale — in music
  17. prune — to trim
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. degree — from a university
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. scale — size or range

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