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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. row — a line
  5. key — for a lock
  6. key — the most important part
  7. degree — an amount
  8. key — in music
  9. vault — a safe
  10. row — to paddle
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. wound — an injury
  14. saw — the tool
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. degree — from a university
  17. drill — army training
  18. wound — an injury
  19. drill — the tool
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. degree — temperature
  23. drill — a practice
  24. saw — the tool

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