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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: key · ground · rest · content · ball · firm

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. ground — a position
  3. rest — a break
  4. ball — a great time
  5. firm — decided
  6. key — in music
  7. content — the amount
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. content — happy
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. rest — what's left
  12. key — for a lock
  13. ball — a dance
  14. firm — steady
  15. ground — the earth
  16. rest — what's left
  17. key — the most important part
  18. firm — a company

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