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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. last — final
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. march — music
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. capital — a city
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. march — the month
  10. pop — music
  11. pop — to visit
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. last — finally
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. march — the month
  16. key — the most important part
  17. last — to go on
  18. chair — a leader
  19. capital — money
  20. pop — soda
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. key — in music
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. ruler — for measuring

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