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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. mate — a friend
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. bass — the fish
  5. key — for a lock
  6. lean — to bend
  7. key — in music
  8. bass — low music
  9. race — humankind
  10. kick — in football
  11. mate — to breed
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. cell — in biology
  16. mate — a partner
  17. cell — a phone
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. key — the most important part
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. race — the arms race
  22. lean — thin
  23. race — a contest
  24. cell — in a prison

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