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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. last — final
  3. key — in music
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. content — the amount
  7. last — finally
  8. club — a group
  9. last — to go on
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bear — the animal
  13. club — for dancing
  14. saw — the tool
  15. key — for a lock
  16. march — the month
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. march — the month
  19. content — happy
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. march — music
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. saw — the tool
  24. key — the most important part

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