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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. content — happy
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. club — a group
  5. fall — the season
  6. key — in music
  7. key — the most important part
  8. key — for a lock
  9. current — happening now
  10. mark — a trace
  11. current — electric
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. fall — to drop
  14. hand — in cards
  15. club — for dancing
  16. content — the amount
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. cold — an illness
  19. club — for golf
  20. mark — a grade
  21. current — of water
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cold — not warm
  24. hand — help

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