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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. land — a country
  3. charge — a price
  4. mark — a grade
  5. land — to come down
  6. charge — in control
  7. mark — a trace
  8. land — ground
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. file — a tool
  11. file — a line of people
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. file — a document
  15. bat — the animal
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. bat — for baseball

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