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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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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 · straw · present · mine · pound · object · rest · kid

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  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. straw — dry grass
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. present — the time now
  5. mine — for digging
  6. present — there
  7. kid — child
  8. object — an aim
  9. rest — what's left
  10. present — a gift
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. pound — a weight
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. object — to protest
  18. key — in music
  19. rest — a break
  20. object — a thing
  21. kid — to tease
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. rest — what's left
  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