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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
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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: saw · spring · capital · clip · track · wax · bowl · key

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. key — for a lock
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. track — a song
  5. saw — the tool
  6. track — a path
  7. spring — of water
  8. spring — a coil
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. wax — to grow
  11. saw — the tool
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. clip — a video
  14. capital — money
  15. clip — for paper
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. spring — the season
  18. clip — to cut
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. capital — a city
  21. track — to keep track
  22. key — in music
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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