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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  17. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. hand — help
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. pop — music
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. current — electric
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. band — a music group
  9. band — a ring
  10. current — happening now
  11. lie — to recline
  12. key — in music
  13. hand — in cards
  14. wake — a trail
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. current — of water
  17. wake — before a funeral
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. pop — to visit
  23. pop — soda
  24. key — for a lock

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