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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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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. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. current — of water
  3. current — happening now
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. content — happy
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. scale — size or range
  9. current — electric
  10. chest — a box
  11. field — for sport
  12. field — farmland
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. file — a document
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. chest — of your body
  17. scale — in music
  18. key — for a lock
  19. file — a tool
  20. key — in music
  21. file — a line of people
  22. chest — of your body
  23. field — a subject
  24. key — the most important part

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