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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. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. key — in music
  3. scale — size or range
  4. cold — an illness
  5. last — finally
  6. drill — army training
  7. firm — decided
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. last — final
  10. firm — steady
  11. drill — a practice
  12. staff — employees
  13. cold — not warm
  14. drill — the tool
  15. staff — a stick
  16. last — to go on
  17. scale — in music
  18. bound — tied together
  19. key — for a lock
  20. firm — a company
  21. bound — obliged
  22. key — the most important part
  23. bound — certain
  24. cold — the Cold War

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