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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. content — the amount
  4. field — farmland
  5. key — for a lock
  6. key — in music
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. mug — a cup
  10. content — happy
  11. spell — magic
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. race — humankind
  14. last — to go on
  15. last — finally
  16. mug — to rob
  17. key — the most important part
  18. spell — letters
  19. last — final
  20. race — the arms race
  21. spell — a short time
  22. field — for sport
  23. field — a subject
  24. race — a contest

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