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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. club — for golf
  3. drill — the tool
  4. chest — a box
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. scale — size or range
  7. squash — to crush
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. key — for a lock
  10. scale — in music
  11. charge — a price
  12. squash — the sport
  13. chest — of your body
  14. key — the most important part
  15. charge — in control
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. club — for dancing
  18. drill — a practice
  19. chest — of your body
  20. drill — army training
  21. club — a group
  22. key — in music
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. scale — for weighing

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