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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. key — for a lock
  4. land — a country
  5. wax — for sculpting
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. land — ground
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. key — the most important part
  10. land — to come down
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. chest — of your body
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. key — in music
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. toast — bread
  18. wax — to grow
  19. fork — in a road
  20. wound — an injury
  21. ball — a great time
  22. wound — an injury
  23. chest — a box
  24. ball — a dance

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