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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. chest — a box
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. key — for a lock
  5. pop — music
  6. net — after costs
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. pit — in a race
  9. bass — the fish
  10. chest — of your body
  11. key — in music
  12. pop — to visit
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. net — for catching
  15. net — in sport
  16. bass — low music
  17. kid — to tease
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chair — a leader
  21. kid — child
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. pop — soda
  24. pit — a hole

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