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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 116 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. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. This piece is in a major ________________.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. bank — for money
  3. key — for a lock
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. board — a committee
  7. content — happy
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. content — the amount
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. march — the month
  12. kid — child
  13. bank — for money
  14. mate — a friend
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. march — the month
  17. board — to get on
  18. kid — to tease
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. key — in music
  21. key — the most important part
  22. mate — to breed
  23. mate — a partner
  24. bank — of a river

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