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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. key — the most important part
  4. field — a subject
  5. march — the month
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. bound — tied together
  8. key — in music
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. perch — the fish
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. land — ground
  13. fork — in a road
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. land — a country
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. field — for sport
  18. bound — certain
  19. land — to come down
  20. march — the month
  21. field — farmland
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. march — music
  24. bound — obliged

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