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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. capital — money
  3. staff — employees
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. rush — hurry
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. rash — hasty
  8. capital — a city
  9. pop — music
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. key — in music
  12. spell — magic
  13. pop — to visit
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. rash — a series
  16. pop — soda
  17. key — for a lock
  18. spell — a short time
  19. spell — letters
  20. staff — employees
  21. staff — a stick
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. safe — out of danger

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