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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 120 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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. land — to come down
  3. staff — employees
  4. ball — a dance
  5. staff — a stick
  6. key — for a lock
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. key — the most important part
  9. bound — tied together
  10. staff — employees
  11. bound — certain
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. bound — obliged
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. shower — rain
  16. ball — a great time
  17. key — in music
  18. shower — to wash
  19. land — a country
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. sharp — clever
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. mouse — the animal

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