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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: content · ball · last · mine · ground · key · current · stem

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. ground — crushed
  3. stem — of a plant
  4. ball — a dance
  5. key — in music
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. current — happening now
  9. ground — the earth
  10. current — of water
  11. ball — a great time
  12. stem — to come from
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. mine — for digging
  15. key — for a lock
  16. current — electric
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. ground — a position
  20. last — final
  21. key — the most important part
  22. content — happy
  23. content — the amount
  24. last — to go on

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