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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. pop — music
  3. mate — to breed
  4. fork — in a road
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. pitch — completely
  7. bat — the animal
  8. land — a country
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. tear — to rip
  11. mate — a friend
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. pop — to visit
  14. mate — a partner
  15. tear — from crying
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. land — ground
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. key — in music
  20. land — to come down
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. tear — from crying
  23. key — for a lock
  24. pop — soda

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