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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. There's a computer ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. bore — to drill
  3. key — the most important part
  4. chip — for betting
  5. lean — to bend
  6. club — a group
  7. game — a match
  8. key — for a lock
  9. chip — to eat
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. club — for dancing
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. key — in music
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. game — wild animals
  17. lean — thin
  18. bore — to tire
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. club — for golf
  21. rash — hasty
  22. rash — a series
  23. band — a music group
  24. chip — in a computer

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