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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: saw · chest · lie · scale · content · wax · field · key

  1. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. content — the amount
  3. field — farmland
  4. content — happy
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chest — a box
  7. saw — the tool
  8. scale — size or range
  9. scale — in music
  10. wax — to grow
  11. lie — to recline
  12. key — for a lock
  13. key — in music
  14. key — the most important part
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. chest — of your body
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. saw — the tool
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. field — a subject
  22. field — for sport
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. lie — an untruth

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