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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 124 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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. charge — electricity
  3. file — a document
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. file — a tool
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. last — finally
  8. march — the month
  9. stock — shares
  10. stock — goods
  11. object — an aim
  12. last — to go on
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. charge — a price
  15. march — music
  16. last — final
  17. charge — in control
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. march — the month
  20. shower — to wash
  21. file — a line of people
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. object — a thing
  24. shower — rain

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