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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 116 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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. hand — in cards
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. capital — money
  8. hand — help
  9. pound — a weight
  10. key — in music
  11. swing — to play on
  12. bass — low music
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. key — for a lock
  16. swing — in golf
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. swing — music
  19. capital — a city
  20. bass — the fish
  21. stem — to come from
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. dip — to sink
  24. pound — to hit hard

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