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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 124 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. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. race — the arms race
  3. tube — the underground
  4. snap — to click
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. present — the time now
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. pound — a weight
  10. tube — a container
  11. cap — a hat
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. cap — of ice
  14. race — a contest
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. key — for a lock
  17. bass — the fish
  18. bass — low music
  19. key — in music
  20. cap — a lid
  21. present — a gift
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. race — humankind
  24. present — there

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