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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 the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. band — a music group
  3. spring — a coil
  4. band — a ring
  5. mate — to breed
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. key — for a lock
  8. key — in music
  9. spring — the season
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. wake — a trail
  14. game — a match
  15. plane — a tool
  16. game — wild animals
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. spring — of water
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. mate — a partner
  23. mate — a friend
  24. band — a rubber band

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