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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. key — the most important part
  3. shower — rain
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. shower — to wash
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. swing — music
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. race — a contest
  11. game — a match
  12. race — the arms race
  13. race — humankind
  14. key — for a lock
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. swing — to play on
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. game — wild animals
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. key — in music
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. pit — in a race
  23. dip — to sink
  24. swing — in golf

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