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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. march — music
  3. key — for a lock
  4. fork — in a road
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. key — the most important part
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. march — the month
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. stand — to bear
  17. bat — the animal
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. march — the month
  23. key — in music
  24. sharp — clever

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