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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. mate — a partner
  3. scale — size or range
  4. spring — of water
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. spring — a coil
  7. scale — in music
  8. swing — to play on
  9. kid — child
  10. key — the most important part
  11. kid — to tease
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. spring — the season
  14. mate — to breed
  15. swing — music
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. key — in music
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. swing — in golf
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. mate — a friend
  23. key — for a lock
  24. scale — for weighing

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