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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: tear · racket · dip · key · field · row · sharp · cap

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. row — to paddle
  3. key — for a lock
  4. field — farmland
  5. cap — a hat
  6. dip — to sink
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. sharp — clever
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. cap — a lid
  12. row — a line
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. key — in music
  16. tear — to rip
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. tear — from crying
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. tear — from crying
  21. field — a subject
  22. field — for sport
  23. cap — of ice
  24. racket — for tennis

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