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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on 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. lean — to bend
  3. lean — thin
  4. key — for a lock
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. court — for sport
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. ground — the earth
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. cap — a lid
  13. court — of law
  14. ground — crushed
  15. court — of a king
  16. plane — a tool
  17. cap — a hat
  18. cap — of ice
  19. ground — a position
  20. scale — in music
  21. key — in music
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. scale — size or range

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