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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. rule — a law
  3. key — for a lock
  4. spring — a coil
  5. present — a gift
  6. spring — the season
  7. cue — a hint
  8. key — in music
  9. degree — temperature
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. spring — of water
  12. capital — a city
  13. present — there
  14. cue — for pool
  15. cue — a signal
  16. present — the time now
  17. stand — to bear
  18. degree — from a university
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. capital — money
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. rule — government
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. degree — an amount

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