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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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468
Word bank
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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. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. key — the most important part
  3. last — finally
  4. degree — temperature
  5. race — the arms race
  6. last — final
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. race — humankind
  9. last — to go on
  10. degree — from a university
  11. perch — the fish
  12. key — in music
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. degree — an amount
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. tear — from crying
  19. jam — to spread on bread
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. race — a contest
  22. tear — to rip
  23. tear — from crying
  24. key — for a lock

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