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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  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. key — for a lock
  2. season — of the year
  3. key — in music
  4. cold — an illness
  5. file — a document
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. key — the most important part
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. cold — not warm
  11. pop — soda
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. file — a tool
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. file — a line of people
  19. pop — music
  20. prune — to trim
  21. pop — to visit
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. season — in sport
  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