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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. content — happy
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. foot — a measure
  6. key — the most important part
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. net — for catching
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. key — for a lock
  12. ball — a dance
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. net — after costs
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. ball — a great time
  17. key — in music
  18. dip — to sink
  19. rule — government
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. rule — a law
  23. content — the amount
  24. mine — for digging

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