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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. content — happy
  3. fine — all right
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. key — in music
  7. spell — magic
  8. key — the most important part
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. wound — an injury
  11. content — the amount
  12. scale — in music
  13. scale — size or range
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. capital — money
  17. capital — a city
  18. foot — a measure
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. spell — a short time
  21. key — for a lock
  22. spell — letters
  23. fine — high quality
  24. wound — an injury

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