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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. key — for a lock
  3. rest — what's left
  4. drill — army training
  5. stock — shares
  6. key — the most important part
  7. craft — boats
  8. ground — the earth
  9. drill — the tool
  10. rest — what's left
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. stock — goods
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. drill — a practice
  17. scale — size or range
  18. ground — crushed
  19. rest — a break
  20. craft — a skill
  21. scale — in music
  22. ground — a position
  23. key — in music
  24. squash — the sport

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