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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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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: bay · club · key · ground · nail · bark · last · wind

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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 — in music
  3. club — for golf
  4. bark — to shout
  5. club — for dancing
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. last — to go on
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. ground — the earth
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. ground — crushed
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. key — for a lock
  18. last — final
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. ground — a position
  21. last — finally
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. club — a group

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