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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. key — the most important part
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. squash — the sport
  7. rest — a break
  8. shower — to wash
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. key — for a lock
  11. key — in music
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. plane — a tool
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. rest — what's left
  19. shower — rain
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. rock — a stone
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. squash — to crush

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