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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. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — a weight
  2. key — for a lock
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. staff — employees
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. last — final
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. fork — in a road
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. key — the most important part
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. wake — a trail
  14. staff — a stick
  15. bore — to tire
  16. season — in sport
  17. bore — to drill
  18. last — finally
  19. last — to go on
  20. staff — employees
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. key — in music
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. season — of the year

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