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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. fall — the season
  4. toast — bread
  5. charge — a price
  6. fall — to drop
  7. capital — a city
  8. bear — the animal
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. face — to confront
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. capital — money
  16. face — part of the head
  17. bear — the animal
  18. wound — an injury
  19. charge — in control
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. wound — an injury
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. face — to point toward
  24. fall — to drop

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