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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. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for dancing
  2. track — to keep track
  3. key — the most important part
  4. key — for a lock
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. pit — in a race
  7. band — a music group
  8. bore — to drill
  9. game — a match
  10. tube — a container
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. track — a song
  13. bore — to tire
  14. tube — the underground
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. pit — a hole
  18. game — wild animals
  19. track — a path
  20. key — in music
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. band — a ring
  23. club — for golf
  24. club — a group

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