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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. wind — moving air
  4. key — the most important part
  5. key — for a lock
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. chest — a box
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. chest — of your body
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. wind — moving air
  14. pit — a hole
  15. mine — for digging
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. vault — a safe
  18. chest — of your body
  19. dip — to sink
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. pit — in a race
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. wake — a trail
  24. mine — an explosive

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