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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
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: last · mate · straw · rash · content · key · ball · file

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. rash — hasty
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. ball — a dance
  7. mate — a friend
  8. key — for a lock
  9. rash — a series
  10. content — the amount
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. file — a tool
  14. file — a document
  15. key — in music
  16. mate — to breed
  17. mate — a partner
  18. content — happy
  19. file — a line of people
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. last — to go on
  22. key — the most important part
  23. last — final
  24. last — finally

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