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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 120 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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. content — the amount
  3. staff — employees
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. staff — employees
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. content — happy
  8. drill — a practice
  9. season — in sport
  10. staff — a stick
  11. key — in music
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. key — the most important part
  14. vault — a safe
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. drill — the tool
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. season — of the year
  22. key — for a lock
  23. band — a music group
  24. band — a ring

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