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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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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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. object — an aim
  3. clip — a video
  4. charge — in control
  5. object — to protest
  6. cell — in biology
  7. tube — the underground
  8. mark — a trace
  9. cell — a phone
  10. charge — a price
  11. clip — for paper
  12. clip — to cut
  13. tube — a container
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. object — a thing
  18. mark — a grade

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