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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. key — in music
  3. club — a group
  4. cold — an illness
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. scale — size or range
  9. key — for a lock
  10. scale — in music
  11. root — the cause
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. root — of a plant
  14. root — of a word
  15. pit — a hole
  16. prune — to trim
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. key — the most important part
  19. prune — to trim
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. pit — in a race
  22. club — for golf
  23. cold — not warm
  24. calf — a young animal

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