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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. ball — a dance
  3. key — the most important part
  4. key — in music
  5. key — for a lock
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. ball — a great time
  10. row — to paddle
  11. chest — a box
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. content — happy
  17. mine — for digging
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. row — a line
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. content — the amount
  22. chest — of your body
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. pitcher — a jug

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