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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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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: rule · cap · key · rash · court · mate · file · ground

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. key — the most important part
  3. court — of law
  4. file — a document
  5. cap — a hat
  6. mate — a partner
  7. key — in music
  8. file — a line of people
  9. cap — of ice
  10. key — for a lock
  11. rash — hasty
  12. ground — a position
  13. file — a tool
  14. rule — a law
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. ground — crushed
  17. rule — government
  18. mate — a friend
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. court — for sport
  21. court — of a king
  22. mate — to breed
  23. ground — the earth
  24. rash — a series

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