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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 120 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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. staff — a stick
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. staff — employees
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bound — obliged
  11. staff — employees
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. fork — in a road
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. bound — certain
  18. key — in music
  19. key — the most important part
  20. chest — of your body
  21. content — the amount
  22. chest — a box
  23. key — for a lock
  24. bound — tied together

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