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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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. current — happening now
  3. spring — a coil
  4. field — farmland
  5. staff — a stick
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. sharp — clever
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. kick — in football
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. key — for a lock
  13. field — a subject
  14. field — for sport
  15. current — of water
  16. spring — the season
  17. key — in music
  18. staff — employees
  19. spring — of water
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. scale — size or range
  22. staff — employees
  23. scale — in music
  24. current — electric

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