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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 124 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. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. pit — in a race
  3. game — a match
  4. key — in music
  5. rest — a break
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. race — the arms race
  8. game — wild animals
  9. key — the most important part
  10. rest — what's left
  11. prune — to trim
  12. prune — to trim
  13. pit — a hole
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. race — humankind
  19. track — a path
  20. race — a contest
  21. rest — what's left
  22. track — a song
  23. track — to keep track
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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