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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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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 · hide · face · bass · staff · track · court · content

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. Check the label for the sugar ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. court — of a king
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. bass — the fish
  5. key — for a lock
  6. face — to confront
  7. content — happy
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. staff — a stick
  10. track — a song
  11. staff — employees
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. court — of law
  14. track — a path
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. face — to point toward
  17. track — to keep track
  18. key — the most important part
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. bass — low music
  21. face — part of the head
  22. key — in music
  23. staff — employees
  24. content — the amount

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