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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. cold — not warm
  6. cold — an illness
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. bound — obliged
  10. bound — tied together
  11. bound — certain
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. ball — a dance
  17. key — in music
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. ball — a great time
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. roll — a list
  22. key — for a lock
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. roll — a cake

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