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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. key — in music
  3. current — of water
  4. key — the most important part
  5. current — electric
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. present — the time now
  9. wound — an injury
  10. court — of law
  11. pound — a weight
  12. court — of a king
  13. present — a gift
  14. wound — an injury
  15. spring — a coil
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. court — for sport
  18. current — happening now
  19. content — the amount
  20. present — there
  21. content — happy
  22. spring — of water
  23. key — for a lock
  24. pound — for dogs

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