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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 116 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. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. press — to push
  3. bulb — for light
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. press — a publisher
  6. tube — the underground
  7. race — humankind
  8. key — in music
  9. tear — from crying
  10. tear — to rip
  11. key — for a lock
  12. land — ground
  13. land — a country
  14. land — to come down
  15. tube — a container
  16. press — newspapers
  17. row — a line
  18. bulb — for light
  19. race — the arms race
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. race — a contest
  22. row — to paddle
  23. tear — from crying
  24. bulb — of a plant

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