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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. I can't ________________ this cold.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. charge — electricity
  4. charge — in control
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. cell — in biology
  8. file — a tool
  9. fall — to drop
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. stand — to bear
  12. drill — the tool
  13. fall — the season
  14. spell — letters
  15. charge — a price
  16. drill — army training
  17. cell — a phone
  18. file — a document
  19. row — to paddle
  20. drill — a practice
  21. row — a line
  22. fall — to drop
  23. file — a line of people
  24. spell — magic

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