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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  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. bat — the animal
  2. rest — a break
  3. ground — crushed
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. drill — a practice
  6. drill — the tool
  7. rash — a series
  8. rest — what's left
  9. key — the most important part
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. key — in music
  13. drill — army training
  14. ground — a position
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. ground — the earth
  17. court — of law
  18. court — for sport
  19. rash — hasty
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. court — of a king
  23. pound — a weight
  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