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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.

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: press · nail · field · kid · spring · key · charge · content

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. key — for a lock
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. spring — the season
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. press — to push
  8. field — farmland
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. press — a publisher
  11. charge — in control
  12. charge — a price
  13. field — a subject
  14. spring — a coil
  15. press — newspapers
  16. content — the amount
  17. content — happy
  18. key — in music
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. field — for sport
  21. charge — electricity
  22. kid — child
  23. spring — of water
  24. kid — to tease

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