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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.

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
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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: wound · rock · wind · content · key · hide · branch · date

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. wound — an injury
  3. content — happy
  4. wind — moving air
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. content — videos and posts
  7. rock — a stone
  8. key — for a lock
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. key — in music
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. rock — music
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. wound — an injury
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. key — the most important part
  20. date — the fruit
  21. wind — moving air
  22. branch — a division
  23. content — the amount
  24. wind — to turn a key

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