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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 120 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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. key — for a lock
  3. key — the most important part
  4. can — to be able to
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. bank — for money
  7. can — a tin
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. court — of a king
  11. clip — for paper
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. court — for sport
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. key — in music
  16. bat — the animal
  17. tear — from crying
  18. tear — from crying
  19. tear — to rip
  20. clip — to cut
  21. bank — for money
  22. court — of law
  23. bank — of a river
  24. clip — a video

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