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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. key — the most important part
  3. bank — of a river
  4. wind — moving air
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. key — in music
  8. wind — moving air
  9. net — in sport
  10. pop — to visit
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. bank — for money
  14. net — for catching
  15. current — happening now
  16. net — after costs
  17. pop — music
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. kid — child
  20. bank — for money
  21. current — electric
  22. pop — soda
  23. current — of water
  24. key — for a lock

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