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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. rock — a stone
  3. cue — for pool
  4. land — to come down
  5. rock — music
  6. scale — in music
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. key — for a lock
  9. cue — a hint
  10. face — to confront
  11. cue — a signal
  12. calf — of the leg
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. cold — not warm
  17. key — the most important part
  18. face — part of the head
  19. land — ground
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. scale — size or range
  22. face — to point toward
  23. land — a country
  24. cold — an illness

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