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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. key — in music
  3. bat — the animal
  4. mug — a face
  5. land — to come down
  6. race — a contest
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. key — the most important part
  9. mug — to rob
  10. spell — letters
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. spell — a short time
  14. object — a thing
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. key — for a lock
  17. mug — a cup
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. race — the arms race
  20. race — humankind
  21. land — a country
  22. object — to protest
  23. object — an aim
  24. spell — magic

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