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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. key — for a lock
  3. field — for sport
  4. snap — to click
  5. degree — from a university
  6. object — an aim
  7. field — farmland
  8. coach — pulled by horses
  9. key — the most important part
  10. object — to protest
  11. degree — temperature
  12. content — the amount
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. key — in music
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. club — for dancing
  17. degree — an amount
  18. field — a subject
  19. club — a group
  20. content — happy
  21. club — for golf
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. object — a thing
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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