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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: staff · saw · rule · mark · content · mate · key · wake

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. mate — a partner
  3. mate — a friend
  4. content — happy
  5. rule — a law
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. saw — the tool
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. rule — government
  11. content — the amount
  12. key — the most important part
  13. key — for a lock
  14. staff — employees
  15. key — in music
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. staff — a stick
  18. wake — a trail
  19. mark — a grade
  20. saw — the tool
  21. mark — a trace
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. mate — to breed

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