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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: chair · tear · land · key · object · scale · file · deal

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. key — for a lock
  3. tear — from crying
  4. land — to come down
  5. object — a thing
  6. object — to protest
  7. file — a tool
  8. deal — an agreement
  9. deal — to handle
  10. file — a document
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. chair — a leader
  13. land — ground
  14. scale — size or range
  15. file — a line of people
  16. land — a country
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. key — the most important part
  19. key — in music
  20. tear — to rip
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. scale — in music
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. tear — from crying

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