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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. cap — of ice
  3. degree — from a university
  4. swing — in golf
  5. charge — a price
  6. degree — an amount
  7. land — ground
  8. charge — in control
  9. cap — a lid
  10. swing — to play on
  11. swing — music
  12. cap — a hat
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. land — a country
  15. degree — temperature
  16. mark — a grade
  17. mark — a trace
  18. land — to come down

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