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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. firm — decided
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. field — a subject
  5. key — the most important part
  6. capital — a city
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. firm — steady
  9. key — for a lock
  10. dip — to sink
  11. kick — in football
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. prune — to trim
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. field — for sport
  17. capital — money
  18. key — in music
  19. field — farmland
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. firm — a company
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. prune — to trim

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