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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. last — finally
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. degree — an amount
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. key — the most important part
  9. key — in music
  10. content — happy
  11. last — to go on
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. key — for a lock
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. degree — temperature
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. degree — from a university
  20. last — final
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. bat — the animal
  23. wake — a trail
  24. content — the 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