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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. cold — an illness
  3. charge — electricity
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. bat — the animal
  7. content — the amount
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. charge — a price
  11. charge — in control
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. plane — a tool
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. cold — not warm
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. pitch — completely
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. rash — hasty
  20. rash — a series
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. scale — size or range
  23. content — happy
  24. pitch — a sports field

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