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

Word bank: key · mine · cell · drill · kid · rock · vault · content

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. This piece is in a major ________________.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. drill — the tool
  4. key — for a lock
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. cell — a phone
  8. key — the most important part
  9. kid — child
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. mine — for digging
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. rock — a stone
  14. cell — in biology
  15. content — the amount
  16. drill — a practice
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. vault — a safe
  19. key — in music
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. drill — army training
  22. content — happy
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. kid — to tease

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