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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. band — a music group
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. key — for a lock
  8. key — the most important part
  9. pass — a permit
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. pop — music
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. cold — not warm
  15. cold — an illness
  16. rush — hurry
  17. key — in music
  18. pop — to visit
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. band — a ring
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. content — the amount
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. pop — soda

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