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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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. key — the most important part
  5. scale — in music
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. key — for a lock
  9. mark — a trace
  10. scale — size or range
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. key — in music
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. content — happy
  16. chest — of your body
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. wake — a trail
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. chest — of your body
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. chest — a box
  24. mark — a grade

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