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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. content — happy
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. race — humankind
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. date — the fruit
  9. degree — from a university
  10. deal — to handle
  11. scale — in music
  12. key — the most important part
  13. scale — for weighing
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. scale — size or range
  16. race — the arms race
  17. key — in music
  18. key — for a lock
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. degree — temperature
  22. race — a contest
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. degree — an amount

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