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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. clip — for paper
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. pit — a hole
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. cold — an illness
  7. land — to come down
  8. clip — a video
  9. clip — to cut
  10. pit — in a race
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. land — a country
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. cold — not warm
  18. land — ground
  19. key — the most important part
  20. bulb — for light
  21. key — in music
  22. bowl — a football final
  23. bulb — for light
  24. cold — the Cold War

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