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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. cue — a signal
  3. ground — the earth
  4. ground — a position
  5. bat — the animal
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. cue — for pool
  8. ground — crushed
  9. cell — in biology
  10. key — for a lock
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. fork — in a road
  14. key — in music
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. cue — a hint
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. kid — child
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. kid — to tease
  23. key — the most important part
  24. pitcher — a jug

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