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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. key — the most important part
  3. ground — a position
  4. rest — what's left
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. ground — crushed
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. race — the arms race
  10. rest — a break
  11. rest — what's left
  12. race — a contest
  13. race — humankind
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. mine — an explosive
  16. mark — a trace
  17. key — for a lock
  18. mine — for digging
  19. band — a ring
  20. key — in music
  21. band — a music group
  22. ground — the earth
  23. scale — in music
  24. mark — a grade

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