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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. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a cup
  2. charge — a price
  3. mug — a face
  4. row — a line
  5. wound — an injury
  6. capital — a city
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. snap — to click
  11. mug — to rob
  12. capital — money
  13. charge — electricity
  14. wound — an injury
  15. row — to paddle
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. charge — in control

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