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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. key — the most important part
  3. track — to keep track
  4. key — for a lock
  5. game — wild animals
  6. pitch — completely
  7. degree — temperature
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. track — a path
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. degree — from a university
  13. rash — hasty
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. degree — an amount
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. rash — a series
  20. key — in music
  21. game — a match
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. trunk — of a tree

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