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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. key — the most important part
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. toast — a drink to someone
  5. clip — a video
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. clip — for paper
  8. field — for sport
  9. fork — in a road
  10. wake — a trail
  11. clip — to cut
  12. field — a subject
  13. key — for a lock
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. dip — to sink
  16. key — in music
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. bank — for money
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. bank — of a river
  23. bank — for money
  24. toast — bread

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