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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 ball is in your ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. key — in music
  3. spell — letters
  4. key — the most important part
  5. court — of law
  6. tear — to rip
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. wound — an injury
  9. dip — to sink
  10. mate — to breed
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. court — of a king
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. spell — magic
  16. tear — from crying
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. mate — a friend
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. mate — a partner
  22. tear — from crying
  23. spell — a short time
  24. key — for a lock

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