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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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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 · present · content · bear · race · date · chair · last

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. bear — the animal
  3. chair — a leader
  4. key — the most important part
  5. present — a gift
  6. content — the amount
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. present — there
  9. last — final
  10. last — finally
  11. race — humankind
  12. last — to go on
  13. key — in music
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. key — for a lock
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. content — happy
  18. bear — the animal
  19. date — the fruit
  20. present — the time now
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. race — the arms race
  24. race — a contest

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