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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. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — pulled by horses
  2. cap — a hat
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. cap — a lid
  7. wake — a trail
  8. key — in music
  9. key — for a lock
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. content — the amount
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. key — the most important part
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. season — in sport
  18. scale — size or range
  19. season — of the year
  20. scale — in music
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. branch — a division
  23. content — happy
  24. cap — of ice

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