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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. club — for golf
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. key — in music
  6. bound — tied together
  7. kid — child
  8. key — the most important part
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. club — for dancing
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. club — a group
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. wound — an injury
  16. kid — to tease
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. key — for a lock
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. bound — certain
  23. bound — obliged
  24. wound — an injury

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