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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 116 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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. content — happy
  3. present — the time now
  4. hand — help
  5. pass — a permit
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. rest — a break
  8. key — for a lock
  9. track — to keep track
  10. hand — in cards
  11. rest — what's left
  12. key — the most important part
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. present — a gift
  15. rest — what's left
  16. track — a path
  17. content — the amount
  18. present — there
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. track — a song
  21. key — in music
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. fork — in a road

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