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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. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — to eat with
  2. last — final
  3. band — a music group
  4. key — the most important part
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. band — a ring
  7. last — to go on
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. spell — a short time
  11. spell — letters
  12. fork — in a road
  13. track — a path
  14. track — a song
  15. spell — magic
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. key — for a lock
  18. spring — a coil
  19. fork — a garden tool
  20. spring — the season
  21. track — to keep track
  22. last — finally
  23. spring — of water
  24. key — in music

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