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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. content — happy
  3. key — for a lock
  4. content — the amount
  5. court — of a king
  6. degree — temperature
  7. court — of law
  8. stand — to bear
  9. key — the most important part
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. capital — money
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. stand — on your feet
  16. degree — from a university
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. capital — a city
  21. branch — a division
  22. court — for sport
  23. degree — an amount
  24. key — in music

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