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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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Word bank
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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  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. mug — a face
  2. vault — a safe
  3. press — to push
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. degree — an amount
  6. mug — to rob
  7. degree — temperature
  8. content — happy
  9. cap — of ice
  10. content — the amount
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. wake — a trail
  15. degree — from a university
  16. cap — a hat
  17. key — for a lock
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. press — a publisher
  20. press — newspapers
  21. key — in music
  22. mug — a cup
  23. cap — a lid
  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