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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. key — in music
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. cell — in biology
  6. march — the month
  7. key — the most important part
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. march — the month
  10. ground — a position
  11. cell — a phone
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. band — a music group
  14. kick — in football
  15. row — to paddle
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. row — a line
  18. ground — the earth
  19. ground — crushed
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. key — for a lock
  22. march — music
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. band — a ring

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