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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. chest — of your body
  3. spell — a short time
  4. spell — magic
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. key — for a lock
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. chest — a box
  9. content — the amount
  10. content — happy
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. spell — letters
  16. branch — a division
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. key — in music
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. chest — of your body

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