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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. The tickets are free of ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. shower — to wash
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. charge — in control
  5. bulb — for light
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. root — of a plant
  10. mark — a grade
  11. charge — electricity
  12. present — a gift
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cold — not warm
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. mark — a trace
  19. shower — rain
  20. root — of a word
  21. root — the cause
  22. present — there
  23. present — the time now
  24. bulb — for light

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