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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. object — a thing
  4. face — to point toward
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. hand — help
  7. mine — for digging
  8. object — an aim
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. rash — a series
  11. hand — in cards
  12. rash — hasty
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. object — to protest
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. track — to keep track
  19. face — part of the head
  20. key — for a lock
  21. track — a path
  22. track — a song
  23. face — to confront
  24. key — the most important part

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