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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 would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. key — the most important part
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wake — a trail
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. object — an aim
  9. date — the fruit
  10. wind — moving air
  11. key — for a lock
  12. roll — a list
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rest — what's left
  15. roll — a cake
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. key — in music
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. object — to protest
  20. content — happy
  21. content — the amount
  22. object — a thing
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. wake — before a funeral

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