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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. hand — in cards
  3. track — a song
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. deal — to handle
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. file — a document
  8. key — for a lock
  9. file — a line of people
  10. track — a path
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. key — in music
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. track — to keep track
  17. bound — obliged
  18. kick — in football
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. bound — tied together
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. bound — certain
  23. file — a tool
  24. hand — help

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