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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. pit — a hole
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. spring — the season
  5. key — for a lock
  6. mate — to breed
  7. mate — a partner
  8. degree — temperature
  9. degree — an amount
  10. chair — a leader
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. object — a thing
  13. rule — government
  14. spring — of water
  15. object — to protest
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. mate — a friend
  18. key — in music
  19. rule — a law
  20. pit — in a race
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. object — an aim
  23. degree — from a university
  24. spring — a coil

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