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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. key — the most important part
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. key — in music
  6. court — for sport
  7. lean — to bend
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. wind — moving air
  11. lean — thin
  12. squash — the sport
  13. court — of a king
  14. date — the fruit
  15. court — of law
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. key — for a lock
  18. content — the amount
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. squash — to crush
  22. content — happy
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — to turn a key

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