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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 116 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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. row — a line
  4. swing — to play on
  5. cap — of ice
  6. cap — a lid
  7. key — in music
  8. face — part of the head
  9. face — to point toward
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. row — to paddle
  12. mine — for digging
  13. cap — a hat
  14. swing — music
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. fall — the season
  17. fan — to cool the air
  18. key — the most important part
  19. face — to confront
  20. fall — to drop
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. fall — to drop
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. swing — in golf

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