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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. key — the most important part
  3. key — in music
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. race — the arms race
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. sharp — clever
  8. branch — a division
  9. race — humankind
  10. row — to paddle
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. tube — a container
  13. ground — a position
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. season — in sport
  16. race — a contest
  17. row — a line
  18. ground — the earth
  19. key — for a lock
  20. tube — the underground
  21. ground — crushed
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. branch — of a tree

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