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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. race — a contest
  3. key — the most important part
  4. file — a line of people
  5. mine — for digging
  6. key — for a lock
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. spell — a short time
  9. mate — to breed
  10. mate — a partner
  11. spell — magic
  12. mate — a friend
  13. key — in music
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. file — a document
  19. spell — letters
  20. race — humankind
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. file — a tool
  23. race — the arms race
  24. coach — a trainer

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