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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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. pop — to visit
  3. key — the most important part
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. key — for a lock
  9. fine — high quality
  10. squash — to crush
  11. rest — what's left
  12. rest — what's left
  13. fine — all right
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. bark — to shout
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. pop — soda
  21. vault — a safe
  22. squash — the sport
  23. key — in music
  24. pop — music

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