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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. key — for a lock
  5. ground — a position
  6. key — the most important part
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. cell — a phone
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. mate — a partner
  12. cell — in biology
  13. mate — to breed
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. pound — a weight
  16. mate — a friend
  17. key — in music
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. ground — the earth
  21. ball — a dance
  22. ground — crushed
  23. wake — a trail
  24. ball — a great time

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