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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. That was ________________ to happen.
  24. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. key — the most important part
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. bound — tied together
  5. clip — for paper
  6. staff — a stick
  7. staff — employees
  8. clip — to cut
  9. fork — in a road
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. shower — rain
  13. clip — a video
  14. shower — to wash
  15. key — for a lock
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. key — in music
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. bound — obliged
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. bat — the animal
  23. bound — certain
  24. temple — a place of worship

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