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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. key — the most important part
  3. club — a group
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. march — the month
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. club — for dancing
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. march — music
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. key — in music
  14. cold — not warm
  15. key — for a lock
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. club — for golf
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. bass — low music
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. bass — the fish
  23. vault — a safe
  24. march — the month

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