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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. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. chest — of your body
  4. mate — to breed
  5. drill — the tool
  6. game — a match
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. chest — of your body
  9. key — in music
  10. band — a music group
  11. scale — in music
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. mate — a partner
  14. fine — high quality
  15. game — wild animals
  16. mate — a friend
  17. key — the most important part
  18. key — for a lock
  19. drill — army training
  20. band — a ring
  21. fine — all right
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. drill — a practice
  24. scale — size or range

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