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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. key — the most important part
  3. staff — employees
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. key — for a lock
  7. degree — an amount
  8. march — music
  9. degree — from a university
  10. key — in music
  11. march — the month
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. march — the month
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — to rip
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. staff — employees
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. cell — in biology
  22. staff — a stick
  23. degree — temperature
  24. tear — from crying

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