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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. key — the most important part
  3. club — a group
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. file — a line of people
  7. prune — to trim
  8. ball — a dance
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. prune — to trim
  11. key — for a lock
  12. face — part of the head
  13. file — a tool
  14. face — to confront
  15. club — for dancing
  16. sharp — clever
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. face — to point toward
  19. ball — a great time
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. key — in music
  22. club — for golf
  23. kick — in football
  24. file — a document

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