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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 old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. firm — a company
  3. key — the most important part
  4. rest — what's left
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. shower — rain
  7. shower — to wash
  8. last — final
  9. firm — steady
  10. key — in music
  11. key — for a lock
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. rest — a break
  14. last — to go on
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. firm — decided
  18. last — finally
  19. game — wild animals
  20. rest — what's left
  21. staff — employees
  22. staff — employees
  23. game — a match
  24. game — a kind of play

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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