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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 120 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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. spell — magic
  3. land — a country
  4. swing — music
  5. craft — boats
  6. rule — a law
  7. land — to come down
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. spell — a short time
  10. swing — to play on
  11. key — for a lock
  12. swing — in golf
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. rule — government
  15. spring — the season
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. craft — a handicraft
  18. spring — of water
  19. key — in music
  20. craft — a skill
  21. spring — a coil
  22. spell — letters
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. land — ground

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