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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. key — the most important part
  3. present — the time now
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. key — in music
  6. degree — from a university
  7. present — there
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. degree — temperature
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. key — for a lock
  14. cap — a hat
  15. degree — an amount
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. present — a gift
  18. saw — the tool
  19. cap — a lid
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. cap — of ice
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. leaves — to go away

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