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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. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. foot — a measure
  3. content — happy
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. capital — a city
  7. mate — a partner
  8. capital — money
  9. court — of a king
  10. mate — a friend
  11. mate — to breed
  12. mug — to rob
  13. key — for a lock
  14. key — in music
  15. content — the amount
  16. mug — a face
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. mug — a cup
  20. key — the most important part
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. court — of law
  23. court — for sport
  24. mine — for digging

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