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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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. charge — in control
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. spell — letters
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cold — an illness
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. chip — to eat
  11. chip — for betting
  12. spell — magic
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. pitch — completely
  15. bat — the animal
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. cold — not warm
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. spell — a short time
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. charge — a price
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  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