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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. content — happy
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. key — the most important part
  5. swing — to play on
  6. ground — a position
  7. firm — a company
  8. ground — the earth
  9. shower — rain
  10. swing — music
  11. swing — in golf
  12. key — for a lock
  13. spring — a coil
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. spring — of water
  16. shower — to wash
  17. content — the amount
  18. firm — steady
  19. ground — crushed
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. key — in music
  23. firm — decided
  24. spring — the season

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