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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 was locked up in a ________________.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. last — final
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. march — the month
  6. court — for sport
  7. court — of law
  8. last — to go on
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. last — finally
  11. foot — a measure
  12. cell — in biology
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. court — of a king
  15. key — in music
  16. march — music
  17. cell — a phone
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. sharp — clever
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. key — for a lock
  23. key — the most important part
  24. march — the month

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