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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. object — a thing
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. key — for a lock
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. object — an aim
  7. ground — a position
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. content — the amount
  10. key — in music
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. clip — to cut
  13. clip — for paper
  14. key — the most important part
  15. clip — a video
  16. object — to protest
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. ground — crushed
  19. ground — the earth
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. wind — moving air
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. content — happy
  24. wind — to turn a key

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