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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. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. key — in music
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. last — to go on
  5. last — finally
  6. key — the most important part
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. last — final
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. cold — not warm
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. key — for a lock
  16. kid — child
  17. plane — a tool
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. kid — to tease
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. game — a match
  22. game — wild animals
  23. cold — an illness
  24. plane — an aircraft

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