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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 116 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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. track — a song
  3. fork — in a road
  4. sharp — clever
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. track — to keep track
  7. key — for a lock
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. pound — to hit hard
  10. land — to come down
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. pound — a weight
  13. key — in music
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. ball — a dance
  16. land — a country
  17. ball — a great time
  18. track — a path
  19. land — ground
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. kid — child
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. kid — to tease
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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