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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 · key · degree · lash · wind · bank · stock · calf

  1. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  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. key — for a lock
  2. content — happy
  3. stock — goods
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. content — the amount
  7. degree — temperature
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. bank — of a river
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. degree — from a university
  12. degree — an amount
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. bank — for money
  15. bank — for money
  16. key — the most important part
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. wind — moving air
  20. stock — a soup base
  21. key — in music
  22. stock — shares
  23. wind — moving air
  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