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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 116 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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. stock — goods
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. present — there
  5. squash — to crush
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. present — a gift
  8. cue — for pool
  9. hand — in cards
  10. spell — letters
  11. cue — a signal
  12. kid — to tease
  13. present — the time now
  14. squash — the sport
  15. spell — a short time
  16. key — in music
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. stock — shares
  20. kid — child
  21. spell — magic
  22. cue — a hint
  23. key — for a lock
  24. hand — help

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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