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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. current — happening now
  3. key — the most important part
  4. current — of water
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. current — electric
  7. ruler — a monarch
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. stem — to come from
  10. squash — to crush
  11. key — in music
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. squash — the sport
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. cold — an illness
  16. fine — high quality
  17. cold — not warm
  18. scale — size or range
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. scale — in music
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. fine — all right
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. stem — a stem cell

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