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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. ground — crushed
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. rash — a series
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. can — a tin
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. cold — not warm
  11. can — to be able to
  12. rash — hasty
  13. stem — to come from
  14. ground — a position
  15. can — a tin
  16. key — the most important part
  17. key — in music
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. cold — an illness
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. ground — the earth
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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