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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. chest — of your body
  3. spell — letters
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. chest — a box
  6. wound — an injury
  7. staff — a stick
  8. chest — of your body
  9. key — for a lock
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. rest — what's left
  12. firm — decided
  13. firm — a company
  14. staff — employees
  15. wound — an injury
  16. key — in music
  17. spell — a short time
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. spell — magic
  20. staff — employees
  21. rest — a break
  22. firm — steady
  23. rest — what's left
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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