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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. court — of law
  7. rock — a stone
  8. key — for a lock
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. pound — a weight
  11. key — in music
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. dip — to sink
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. court — for sport
  16. rock — music
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cold — not warm
  21. cold — an illness
  22. court — of a king
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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