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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: key · lie · cell · last · bound · root · can · ground

  1. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. key — the most important part
  4. key — for a lock
  5. ground — crushed
  6. bound — tied together
  7. root — of a word
  8. last — to go on
  9. last — final
  10. can — a tin
  11. ground — the earth
  12. lie — to recline
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. bound — certain
  15. bound — obliged
  16. ground — a position
  17. can — to be able to
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. cell — a phone
  20. cell — in biology
  21. root — of a plant
  22. root — the cause
  23. can — a tin
  24. last — finally

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