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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 120 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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. season — of the year
  3. mark — a trace
  4. fine — all right
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. court — of law
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. march — the month
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. fine — high quality
  11. foot — a measure
  12. row — a line
  13. key — in music
  14. court — for sport
  15. mark — a grade
  16. season — in sport
  17. court — of a king
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. march — the month
  20. row — to paddle
  21. key — for a lock
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. march — music
  24. season — to add flavour

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