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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: ruler · cabinet · kid · current · squash · hide · game · key

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. The people resisted their cruel ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. game — wild animals
  6. key — for a lock
  7. key — in music
  8. kid — child
  9. kid — to tease
  10. cabinet — a cupboard
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. current — of water
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. game — a match
  17. squash — the sport
  18. current — electric
  19. current — happening now
  20. squash — to crush
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. ruler — a monarch

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