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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. cue — a signal
  4. key — for a lock
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. wound — an injury
  7. fall — to drop
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. mate — to breed
  13. cue — a hint
  14. key — in music
  15. mate — a friend
  16. fall — to drop
  17. row — to paddle
  18. fall — the season
  19. cue — for pool
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. mate — a partner
  22. wax — to grow
  23. row — a line
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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