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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. cue — a hint
  3. field — farmland
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. cue — for pool
  7. ground — the earth
  8. key — the most important part
  9. face — to point toward
  10. spring — the season
  11. deal — to handle
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. spring — of water
  14. ground — crushed
  15. key — in music
  16. cue — a signal
  17. spring — a coil
  18. field — for sport
  19. face — to confront
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. field — a subject
  22. face — part of the head
  23. ground — a position
  24. key — for a lock

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