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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. pop — music
  3. bass — low music
  4. bulb — for light
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. pop — soda
  7. fork — in a road
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. spell — a short time
  12. pop — to visit
  13. key — for a lock
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. mine — for digging
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. key — in music
  20. spell — magic
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. bulb — for light
  23. spell — letters
  24. bass — the fish

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