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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. hand — in cards
  4. last — final
  5. court — of a king
  6. last — to go on
  7. key — the most important part
  8. court — of law
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. key — for a lock
  11. court — for sport
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. band — a music group
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. degree — from a university
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. band — a ring
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. degree — an amount
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. key — in music
  22. degree — temperature
  23. hand — help
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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