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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. key — the most important part
  4. wound — an injury
  5. charge — a price
  6. charge — electricity
  7. rock — a stone
  8. fork — in a road
  9. rock — music
  10. wound — an injury
  11. lean — thin
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. key — in music
  14. charge — in control
  15. scale — size or range
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. cap — of ice
  18. lean — to bend
  19. cap — a lid
  20. cap — a hat
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. scale — in music
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. scale — for weighing

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