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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. key — for a lock
  3. land — to come down
  4. land — a country
  5. wake — a trail
  6. deal — to handle
  7. fork — in a road
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. last — finally
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. key — in music
  12. last — final
  13. key — the most important part
  14. game — wild animals
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. net — after costs
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. game — a match
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — for catching
  24. land — ground

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