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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: bat · board · band · dip · key · spring · bound · last

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. board — to get on
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. spring — of water
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. bound — certain
  9. last — final
  10. board — a committee
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. dip — to sink
  13. bound — obliged
  14. key — in music
  15. last — to go on
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. spring — the season
  18. bat — the animal
  19. bound — tied together
  20. band — a music group
  21. last — finally
  22. spring — a coil
  23. band — a ring
  24. key — for a lock

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