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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. object — an aim
  3. object — to protest
  4. chip — for betting
  5. key — the most important part
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. key — for a lock
  8. sharp — clever
  9. spring — a coil
  10. band — a music group
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. object — a thing
  13. file — a document
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. file — a tool
  16. file — a line of people
  17. rash — a series
  18. key — in music
  19. band — a ring
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. spring — the season
  22. spring — of water
  23. chip — to eat
  24. sharp — exactly

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