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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. wake — a trail
  3. mark — a trace
  4. last — finally
  5. club — for dancing
  6. degree — an amount
  7. key — the most important part
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. mark — a grade
  10. cold — an illness
  11. club — for golf
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. ground — a position
  14. ground — crushed
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. key — for a lock
  17. ground — the earth
  18. last — to go on
  19. club — a group
  20. degree — from a university
  21. degree — temperature
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. last — final
  24. cold — not warm

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