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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.

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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: content · rock · key · degree · rash · cue · kick · kid

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. kid — child
  3. rock — a stone
  4. degree — from a university
  5. cue — a hint
  6. content — the amount
  7. key — for a lock
  8. cue — a signal
  9. rash — a series
  10. kid — to tease
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. rock — music
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. cue — for pool
  16. content — happy
  17. degree — temperature
  18. key — in music
  19. key — the most important part
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. degree — an amount
  22. kick — in football
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. content — videos and posts

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