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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. rock — music
  3. present — the time now
  4. track — to keep track
  5. staff — employees
  6. rock — a stone
  7. spring — of water
  8. spring — the season
  9. track — a path
  10. staff — a stick
  11. track — a song
  12. key — for a lock
  13. spring — a coil
  14. staff — employees
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. key — the most important part
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. game — a match
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. bowl — to roll
  21. game — wild animals
  22. present — a gift
  23. present — there
  24. key — in music

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