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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. pitch — completely
  3. snap — to click
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. key — for a lock
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. craft — boats
  9. stock — goods
  10. craft — a skill
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. root — of a word
  13. season — in sport
  14. key — in music
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. root — the cause
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. season — of the year
  20. bat — the animal
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. root — of a plant
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. stock — shares

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