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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. wound — an injury
  4. content — happy
  5. bass — low music
  6. key — for a lock
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. court — for sport
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. content — the amount
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. court — of law
  16. wound — an injury
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. pound — a weight
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. key — the most important part
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. court — of a king
  23. ruler — for measuring
  24. bass — the fish

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