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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. staff — employees
  3. land — ground
  4. staff — a stick
  5. charge — a price
  6. wind — moving air
  7. land — a country
  8. bound — obliged
  9. staff — employees
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. land — to come down
  13. wind — moving air
  14. bat — the animal
  15. game — wild animals
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. game — a match
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. bound — certain
  21. charge — in control
  22. charge — electricity
  23. bound — tied together
  24. bat — in an idiom

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