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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. key — in music
  3. stem — to come from
  4. field — farmland
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. rule — a law
  7. drill — a practice
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. field — a subject
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. field — for sport
  14. press — newspapers
  15. rash — hasty
  16. drill — army training
  17. key — for a lock
  18. rash — a series
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. rule — government
  21. press — a publisher
  22. drill — the tool
  23. press — to push
  24. stem — a stem cell

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