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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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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: spring · rash · pit · court · scale · track · key · chip

  1. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. court — for sport
  3. key — the most important part
  4. spring — of water
  5. spring — the season
  6. spring — a coil
  7. pit — in a race
  8. rash — a series
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. chip — to eat
  11. track — a song
  12. track — to keep track
  13. court — of law
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. scale — in music
  16. pit — a hole
  17. court — of a king
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. scale — size or range
  20. rash — hasty
  21. key — for a lock
  22. track — a path
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. chip — for betting

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