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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. wind — moving air
  3. bat — the animal
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. tear — from crying
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. tear — to rip
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. rush — hurry
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. craft — boats
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. tear — from crying
  19. date — the fruit
  20. wind — moving air
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. key — in music
  23. key — the most important part
  24. craft — a skill

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