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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. rest — what's left
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. key — the most important part
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. club — for dancing
  7. spring — the season
  8. key — for a lock
  9. rest — what's left
  10. club — a group
  11. bank — of a river
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. rest — a break
  14. club — for golf
  15. kid — to tease
  16. content — happy
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. kid — child
  20. content — the amount
  21. bank — for money
  22. bank — for money
  23. spring — of water
  24. key — in music

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