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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.

Make a worksheet

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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. prune — to trim
  3. ball — a great time
  4. key — in music
  5. prune — to trim
  6. ball — a dance
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. key — for a lock
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. spell — magic
  15. spell — letters
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. content — happy
  18. spell — a short time
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. content — the amount
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. content — videos and posts

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