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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. staff — employees
  3. vault — a safe
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. can — a tin
  6. wake — a trail
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. spring — a coil
  9. staff — employees
  10. can — to be able to
  11. can — a tin
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. staff — a stick
  15. spring — the season
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. key — for a lock
  20. spring — of water
  21. rock — a stone
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. rock — music
  24. key — in music

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