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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. key — the most important part
  3. march — the month
  4. bank — for money
  5. scale — in music
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. key — for a lock
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bat — the animal
  10. current — electric
  11. wind — moving air
  12. march — music
  13. current — of water
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. march — the month
  16. current — happening now
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. bank — for money
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. bank — of a river
  21. prune — to trim
  22. scale — size or range
  23. prune — to trim
  24. bat — in an idiom

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