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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 116 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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. What do you think of the new ________________?
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. key — for a lock
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. mark — a trace
  5. key — the most important part
  6. mark — a grade
  7. club — for dancing
  8. mine — for digging
  9. ground — crushed
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. ground — a position
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. degree — from a university
  15. key — in music
  16. fork — in a road
  17. club — for golf
  18. degree — an amount
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. degree — temperature
  22. ground — the earth
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. club — a group

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