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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. key — the most important part
  4. band — a ring
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. band — a music group
  7. bore — to drill
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. rash — a series
  10. key — in music
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. last — final
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. last — to go on
  16. bore — to tire
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. last — finally
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — an illness
  23. key — for a lock
  24. nail — on a finger

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