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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. charge — electricity
  3. charge — a price
  4. cap — of ice
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. cap — a lid
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. track — a path
  9. charge — in control
  10. trunk — of a tree
  11. wind — moving air
  12. cap — a hat
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fall — the season
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. track — to keep track
  19. pit — in a race
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. fall — to drop
  22. track — a song
  23. pit — a hole
  24. mine — belonging to me

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