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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. key — the most important part
  3. tear — to rip
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. key — for a lock
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. tear — from crying
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. rule — a law
  11. tear — from crying
  12. track — a song
  13. stem — to come from
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. rest — a break
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. pound — a weight
  18. rest — what's left
  19. track — a path
  20. rule — government
  21. sharp — clever
  22. track — to keep track
  23. rest — what's left
  24. key — in music

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