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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. key — for a lock
  3. key — the most important part
  4. spell — letters
  5. degree — temperature
  6. spell — magic
  7. wind — moving air
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. wind — moving air
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. spell — a short time
  19. degree — an amount
  20. key — in music
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. branch — a division
  24. degree — from a university

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