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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. key — the most important part
  3. game — a match
  4. track — to keep track
  5. rest — what's left
  6. court — of law
  7. game — a kind of play
  8. game — wild animals
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. rest — a break
  11. court — for sport
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. track — a song
  14. branch — a division
  15. object — to protest
  16. object — a thing
  17. pitch — completely
  18. object — an aim
  19. key — for a lock
  20. track — a path
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. court — of a king
  23. rest — what's left
  24. pitch — a sports field

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