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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. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. kid — child
  3. key — the most important part
  4. spell — letters
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. squash — the sport
  7. chip — to eat
  8. cell — in biology
  9. cell — a phone
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. key — in music
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. key — for a lock
  14. spell — magic
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. kid — to tease
  17. season — in sport
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. lie — to recline
  21. season — of the year
  22. squash — to crush
  23. chip — for betting
  24. spell — a short time

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