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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. cell — a phone
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. kid — to tease
  5. capital — money
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. charge — electricity
  8. charge — in control
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. pop — music
  11. key — for a lock
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. pop — to visit
  15. kid — child
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. capital — a city
  18. key — in music
  19. pop — soda
  20. charge — a price
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. cell — in biology
  24. capital — a big letter

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