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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. last — finally
  3. season — of the year
  4. bound — tied together
  5. charge — a price
  6. shower — rain
  7. charge — electricity
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. season — in sport
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. bound — certain
  12. last — final
  13. prune — to trim
  14. charge — in control
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. prune — to trim
  18. cell — in biology
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. bound — obliged
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. cell — a phone
  24. last — to go on

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