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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. current — happening now
  2. scale — size or range
  3. key — the most important part
  4. current — electric
  5. mate — a friend
  6. chest — a box
  7. tear — to rip
  8. current — of water
  9. rest — what's left
  10. chest — of your body
  11. scale — in music
  12. key — for a lock
  13. bass — low music
  14. rest — what's left
  15. mate — to breed
  16. key — in music
  17. mate — a partner
  18. tear — from crying
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bass — the fish
  22. tear — from crying
  23. rest — a break
  24. scale — for weighing

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