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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. march — the month
  4. key — the most important part
  5. chair — a leader
  6. mark — a trace
  7. perch — the fish
  8. ground — a position
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. key — in music
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. key — for a lock
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. mark — a grade
  16. spring — a coil
  17. march — the month
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. spring — of water
  21. march — music
  22. spring — the season
  23. ground — the earth
  24. mark — to pay attention

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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