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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. drill — the tool
  5. bass — low music
  6. present — a gift
  7. content — the amount
  8. drill — a practice
  9. key — for a lock
  10. present — there
  11. prune — to trim
  12. content — happy
  13. key — the most important part
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. prune — to trim
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. present — the time now
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. key — in music
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. bass — the fish
  24. drill — army training

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