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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. rest — what's left
  4. land — to come down
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. key — in music
  7. content — happy
  8. key — for a lock
  9. key — the most important part
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. rest — what's left
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. pop — to visit
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. race — a contest
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. rest — a break
  19. pop — music
  20. land — a country
  21. race — humankind
  22. race — the arms race
  23. pop — soda
  24. land — ground

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