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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. key — the most important part
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. bat — the animal
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. chair — a leader
  14. key — in music
  15. face — to confront
  16. face — part of the head
  17. face — to point toward
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. dip — to sink
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. key — for a lock
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. pitcher — a jug

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