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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 116 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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. charge — in control
  3. fall — the season
  4. ground — a position
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. charge — electricity
  7. tear — to rip
  8. season — of the year
  9. wake — a trail
  10. ground — the earth
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. net — in sport
  13. fall — to drop
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. root — of a word
  16. tear — from crying
  17. ground — crushed
  18. root — the cause
  19. net — for catching
  20. root — of a plant
  21. charge — a price
  22. fall — to drop
  23. tear — from crying
  24. net — after costs

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