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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. chip — to eat
  5. chip — for betting
  6. key — for a lock
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. land — a country
  10. land — to come down
  11. swing — music
  12. swing — to play on
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. clip — for paper
  15. ball — a dance
  16. ball — a great time
  17. clip — a video
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. key — in music
  20. band — a ring
  21. clip — to cut
  22. band — a music group
  23. land — ground
  24. swing — in golf

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