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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. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — to hit hard
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. content — happy
  6. spring — of water
  7. cell — a phone
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. spring — the season
  10. pound — a weight
  11. key — in music
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. key — for a lock
  14. spring — a coil
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. content — the amount
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. current — of water
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. cell — in biology
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. key — the most important part
  23. current — happening now
  24. current — electric

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