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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. saw — the tool
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. saw — the tool
  8. cap — a lid
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. key — the most important part
  11. capital — a city
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. key — for a lock
  14. wake — a trail
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. cap — of ice
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. key — in music
  21. bat — the animal
  22. capital — money
  23. dip — to sink
  24. cap — a hat

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