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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. last — final
  3. bound — tied together
  4. chip — to eat
  5. last — finally
  6. cold — an illness
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. lie — to recline
  10. key — in music
  11. drill — army training
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. bound — certain
  14. bound — obliged
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. key — the most important part
  17. can — a tin
  18. drill — a practice
  19. drill — the tool
  20. can — to be able to
  21. chip — for betting
  22. cold — not warm
  23. can — a tin
  24. last — to go on

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