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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. key — the most important part
  4. race — humankind
  5. bulb — for light
  6. key — for a lock
  7. branch — a division
  8. race — the arms race
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. cell — in biology
  16. spring — of water
  17. present — the time now
  18. spring — a coil
  19. key — in music
  20. scale — size or range
  21. scale — in music
  22. spring — the season
  23. present — a gift
  24. race — a contest

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