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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.

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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. mine — for digging
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. capital — money
  6. key — in music
  7. bark — to shout
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. capital — a city
  10. cell — in biology
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. cell — a phone
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bulb — for light
  21. key — the most important part
  22. leaves — to go away
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. bulb — for light

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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