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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 116 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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. court — of law
  3. key — the most important part
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. fall — to drop
  6. key — for a lock
  7. tear — from crying
  8. object — a thing
  9. tear — from crying
  10. cap — of ice
  11. object — an aim
  12. fall — the season
  13. court — of a king
  14. cap — a hat
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. object — to protest
  20. cap — a lid
  21. court — for sport
  22. tear — to rip
  23. fall — to drop
  24. key — in music

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