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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: key · ground · sharp · club · last · shower · present · mine

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. club — a group
  3. sharp — clever
  4. ground — crushed
  5. key — in music
  6. shower — rain
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. last — finally
  9. last — to go on
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. key — for a lock
  12. last — final
  13. club — for golf
  14. ground — the earth
  15. present — there
  16. ground — a position
  17. present — a gift
  18. mine — for digging
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. present — the time now
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. club — for dancing
  24. shower — to wash

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