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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. lean — thin
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. game — wild animals
  5. chip — to eat
  6. swing — music
  7. swing — to play on
  8. hand — help
  9. key — for a lock
  10. chip — for betting
  11. swing — in golf
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. hand — in cards
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. lean — to bend
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. wake — a trail
  20. sharp — clever
  21. key — in music
  22. game — a match
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. wake — before a funeral

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