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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. key — in music
  3. file — a document
  4. spell — a short time
  5. file — a line of people
  6. bound — certain
  7. face — part of the head
  8. season — of the year
  9. key — the most important part
  10. face — to point toward
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. race — the arms race
  13. race — a contest
  14. bass — the fish
  15. race — humankind
  16. bass — low music
  17. spell — letters
  18. spell — magic
  19. file — a tool
  20. bound — tied together
  21. face — to confront
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. bound — obliged
  24. season — in sport

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