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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. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. squash — the sport
  4. bark — to shout
  5. squash — to crush
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. stock — shares
  8. current — of water
  9. current — electric
  10. current — happening now
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. capital — a city
  14. ball — a great time
  15. key — in music
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. stock — goods
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. key — for a lock
  23. capital — money
  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