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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. key — for a lock
  9. wax — to grow
  10. kid — to tease
  11. content — happy
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. plane — a tool
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. key — in music
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. root — of a word
  18. key — the most important part
  19. root — the cause
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. root — of a plant
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. kid — child
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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