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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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. wind — moving air
  3. field — for sport
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. key — the most important part
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. rock — a stone
  8. object — to protest
  9. field — farmland
  10. field — a subject
  11. object — an aim
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. key — for a lock
  16. object — a thing
  17. rock — music
  18. wind — moving air
  19. tube — a container
  20. cell — in biology
  21. key — in music
  22. cell — a phone
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. tube — the underground

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