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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. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. key — in music
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. mate — to breed
  5. mug — a cup
  6. key — for a lock
  7. chest — of your body
  8. mate — a partner
  9. chair — a leader
  10. mug — to rob
  11. content — happy
  12. wax — to grow
  13. content — the amount
  14. chest — a box
  15. deal — to handle
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. deal — a big deal
  18. chest — of your body
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. mate — a friend
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. mug — a face
  24. wax — for sculpting

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