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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. wind — moving air
  3. tear — from crying
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. tear — from crying
  7. ball — a dance
  8. scale — in music
  9. staff — employees
  10. chair — a leader
  11. key — the most important part
  12. staff — a stick
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. wind — moving air
  15. scale — size or range
  16. staff — employees
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. ball — a great time
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. key — in music
  22. pitch — completely
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. tear — to rip

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