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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.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. We're on a ________________ here.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. roll — a list
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. charge — electricity
  6. cold — an illness
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. charge — a price
  9. cue — a signal
  10. roll — on a roll
  11. cue — a hint
  12. roll — a cake
  13. cue — for pool
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. cold — not warm
  16. scale — size or range
  17. scale — in music
  18. straw — to clutch at straws

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