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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. The tickets are free of ________________.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. capital — a city
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. capital — money
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. cold — not warm
  12. deal — to handle
  13. game — a match
  14. charge — in control
  15. cold — an illness
  16. lie — to recline
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. game — wild animals
  20. lean — thin
  21. charge — a price
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. fork — in a road
  24. lean — to bend

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