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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
468
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: cabinet · pound · straw · march · key · land · object · hand

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. hand — in cards
  3. key — the most important part
  4. march — music
  5. land — to come down
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. cabinet — a cupboard
  9. march — the month
  10. land — ground
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. key — for a lock
  13. pound — a weight
  14. hand — help
  15. object — to protest
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. pound — to hit hard
  18. object — a thing
  19. land — a country
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. object — an aim
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. key — in music
  24. straw — a straw man

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