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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. key — the most important part
  3. rash — a series
  4. can — a tin
  5. court — of a king
  6. can — a tin
  7. key — for a lock
  8. last — to go on
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. saw — the tool
  11. last — finally
  12. tear — to rip
  13. tear — from crying
  14. saw — the tool
  15. court — of law
  16. rash — hasty
  17. tube — the underground
  18. can — to be able to
  19. key — in music
  20. tube — a container
  21. last — final
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tear — from crying
  24. rash — on the skin

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