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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. field — for sport
  3. key — the most important part
  4. key — for a lock
  5. mate — a friend
  6. mate — to breed
  7. face — part of the head
  8. mate — a partner
  9. field — a subject
  10. field — farmland
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. spell — magic
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. last — to go on
  15. clip — for paper
  16. clip — to cut
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. face — to point toward
  19. clip — a video
  20. last — finally
  21. face — to confront
  22. last — final
  23. spell — letters
  24. key — in music

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