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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. rash — a series
  3. bat — the animal
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. scale — size or range
  6. rash — hasty
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. key — in music
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. tear — from crying
  11. degree — temperature
  12. degree — from a university
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. tear — from crying
  16. scale — in music
  17. tear — to rip
  18. degree — an amount
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. key — for a lock
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. dip — to sink
  24. rash — on the skin

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