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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. rest — a break
  3. key — in music
  4. mate — to breed
  5. ground — the earth
  6. roll — a list
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. roll — a cake
  9. key — for a lock
  10. ground — a position
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. squash — the sport
  13. mine — for digging
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. rest — what's left
  16. mate — a partner
  17. key — the most important part
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. wind — moving air
  20. squash — to crush
  21. mate — a friend
  22. rest — what's left
  23. wind — moving air
  24. mine — an explosive

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