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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: lie · club · kid · key · season · face · content · nail

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. lie — to recline
  3. club — for dancing
  4. kid — to tease
  5. face — to point toward
  6. season — of the year
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. content — happy
  13. content — the amount
  14. face — to confront
  15. key — for a lock
  16. season — in sport
  17. key — the most important part
  18. key — in music
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. kid — child
  21. face — part of the head
  22. club — a group
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. season — to add flavour

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