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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. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. key — the most important part
  3. spell — a short time
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. content — the amount
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. key — for a lock
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. spell — magic
  10. spell — letters
  11. wax — in the ear
  12. fine — all right
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. wax — to grow
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. scale — size or range
  17. key — in music
  18. object — an aim
  19. fine — high quality
  20. content — happy
  21. scale — in music
  22. band — a music group
  23. object — a thing
  24. object — to protest

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