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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. field — for sport
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. pit — in a race
  8. tear — to rip
  9. wake — a trail
  10. pit — a hole
  11. field — a subject
  12. field — farmland
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. key — in music
  15. club — for dancing
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. key — for a lock
  18. club — a group
  19. club — for golf
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — from crying
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. leaves — 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