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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 120 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. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. row — to paddle
  3. hand — help
  4. stem — to come from
  5. dip — to sink
  6. dip — to dunk
  7. charge — electricity
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. rule — a law
  10. cue — a hint
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. row — a line
  13. charge — in control
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. rule — government
  16. hand — in cards
  17. cue — for pool
  18. file — a document
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. file — a tool
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. file — a line of people
  24. cue — a signal

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