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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. key — the most important part
  5. key — for a lock
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. tear — to rip
  8. spring — a coil
  9. shower — rain
  10. tear — from crying
  11. rock — music
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. sharp — clever
  14. spring — of water
  15. shower — to wash
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. spring — the season
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. rock — a stone
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. tear — from crying
  24. sharp — with an edge

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