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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. charge — in control
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. last — final
  5. hand — in cards
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. capital — a city
  9. present — the time now
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. capital — money
  15. hand — help
  16. last — finally
  17. last — to go on
  18. foot — a measure
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. present — a gift
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. charge — a price
  23. bat — the animal
  24. charge — electricity

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