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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: cold · ruler · key · perch · present · craft

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. key — for a lock
  4. craft — boats
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. cold — an illness
  8. perch — the fish
  9. present — the time now
  10. cold — not warm
  11. present — a gift
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. present — there
  16. key — in music
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. craft — a skill

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