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

Word bank: march · bank · ground · content · swing · key · hide · kick

  1. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. swing — in golf
  3. kick — in football
  4. bank — for money
  5. key — in music
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. swing — to play on
  9. swing — music
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. ground — crushed
  13. content — the amount
  14. march — the month
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. key — for a lock
  17. ground — the earth
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. bank — for money
  20. key — the most important part
  21. ground — a position
  22. bank — of a river
  23. march — the month
  24. march — music

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