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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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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. charge — in control
  3. rule — a law
  4. shower — to wash
  5. charge — a price
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. net — in sport
  8. shower — rain
  9. net — after costs
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. chip — for betting
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. rule — government
  14. chip — to eat
  15. season — of the year
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. season — in sport
  18. net — for catching

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