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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. land — ground
  3. wax — to grow
  4. land — to come down
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. degree — from a university
  7. degree — temperature
  8. key — in music
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. rest — what's left
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. land — a country
  14. scale — size or range
  15. degree — an amount
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. key — for a lock
  18. scale — in music
  19. rest — what's left
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. rest — a break
  23. dip — to sink
  24. dip — a sauce

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