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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 120 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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. mate — a partner
  3. mate — to breed
  4. bark — to shout
  5. mate — a friend
  6. land — a country
  7. foot — a measure
  8. drill — the tool
  9. land — ground
  10. key — for a lock
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. drill — a practice
  13. root — of a plant
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. key — in music
  16. land — to come down
  17. root — of a word
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. board — to get on
  22. drill — army training
  23. board — a committee
  24. root — the cause

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