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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. land — ground
  3. shower — rain
  4. scale — in music
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. mate — a partner
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. mate — a friend
  11. land — to come down
  12. key — the most important part
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. hand — in cards
  15. key — in music
  16. scale — size or range
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. land — a country
  19. shower — to wash
  20. hand — help
  21. bound — obliged
  22. bound — tied together
  23. mate — to breed
  24. key — for a lock

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