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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. key — for a lock
  5. chair — a leader
  6. hand — help
  7. key — in music
  8. fork — in a road
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. wax — to grow
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. field — a subject
  19. field — for sport
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. field — farmland
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. hand — in cards

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