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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.

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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. bass — low music
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. saw — the tool
  5. march — the month
  6. march — the month
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. staff — employees
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — a stick
  11. saw — the tool
  12. key — the most important part
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. march — music
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. content — the amount
  19. key — for a lock
  20. bass — the fish
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. key — in music
  24. bass — the instrument

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