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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. key — for a lock
  3. present — a gift
  4. shower — to wash
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. present — there
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. key — in music
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bark — to shout
  15. sharp — clever
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. shower — rain
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. pitch — completely
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. present — the time now

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