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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. My mare is ________________ in color.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. bound — certain
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. pitch — completely
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. toast — bread
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. clip — for paper
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. bound — tied together
  13. clip — a video
  14. bay — a horse colour
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. key — for a lock
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bound — obliged
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. pound — a weight
  22. key — in music
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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