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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. net — after costs
  3. key — for a lock
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. cap — a lid
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. chest — of your body
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. chest — of your body
  15. net — for catching
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. net — in sport
  18. chest — a box
  19. cap — of ice
  20. cap — a hat
  21. wax — to grow
  22. rush — hurry
  23. key — in music
  24. racket — a loud noise

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