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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 116 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: club · scale · key · shower · mine · content · mark · squash

  1. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. mine — for digging
  3. scale — in music
  4. club — for golf
  5. shower — rain
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. club — for dancing
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. content — happy
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. mark — a grade
  13. club — a group
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. key — in music
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. squash — to crush
  18. scale — size or range
  19. key — the most important part
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. squash — the sport
  22. shower — to wash
  23. key — for a lock
  24. mark — a trace

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