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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 120 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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with 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. key — for a lock
  3. tear — to rip
  4. bass — the fish
  5. chair — a leader
  6. ball — a dance
  7. bass — low music
  8. tear — from crying
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. lean — to bend
  11. pop — to visit
  12. key — in music
  13. ball — a great time
  14. file — a document
  15. file — a line of people
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. pop — music
  19. tear — from crying
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. lean — thin
  23. pop — soda
  24. file — a tool

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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