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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 116 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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. key — for a lock
  3. hand — help
  4. ball — a dance
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. saw — the tool
  8. key — the most important part
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. fall — to drop
  13. chip — for betting
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. fall — to drop
  16. stem — to come from
  17. chip — to eat
  18. saw — the tool
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. hand — in cards
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. fall — the season
  23. kick — in football
  24. key — in music

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