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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 120 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. rest — a break
  4. key — in music
  5. key — the most important part
  6. wind — moving air
  7. key — for a lock
  8. race — the arms race
  9. content — happy
  10. rest — what's left
  11. race — humankind
  12. stock — goods
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. race — a contest
  15. stock — shares
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. wind — moving air
  18. rest — what's left

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